Surf Surprises

Summer is the time for surf kayaking and down-winders, this morning I had no expectation of either, but I found myself catching a series of small but very fun waves near Square Head at Cullendulla. Last Saturday, we paddled over to the Batemans Bay bar expecting some good rides only to find that despite an outgoing tide (with a rapid current running), the bar was more like a tidal rapid than a nice series of green waves we could catch. Today, as I wandered north past Snapper Island and over to Square Head, I noticed a nice little wave coming into the mouth of Cullendulla Creek. I kept going and paddled past Hawks Nest Headland thinking I would catch a wave of two on the way back if the waves were still good.

Although the tide was rising, the waves were surprisingly good and I was catching runs that were over 300 metres long! It’s hard to predict when the main bar on the Clyde River or this little bar at the mouth of Cullendulla Creek will be good. Cullendulla normally needs a big southeasterly swell to be good – 4 or 5 metres on the Batemans Bay wave buoy and a tide that is not too high. The Batemans Bay bar is more forgiving, you can often find good waves with as little as two metres on the Batemans Bay wave buoy especially if the swell is easterly. A falling tide helps stand the waves up and makes the paddle back out easier but we have had good sessions with a rising tides as the waves sometimes stay greener for longer.

If the conditions are right, the Cullendulla bar is excellent for beginners. The waves are generally widely spaced and even. A capsize is easily managed even if the paddler cannot roll. The Batemans Bay bar can be more challenging for less competent paddlers as there are often (almost always) many lines of breaking waves. This means you can have really long rides (up to half a kilometre) by jumping from one wave to another but a capsize can also be much more challenging to manage if the paddler cannot roll. 

One of my kayaking friends who came out of her kayak on the Batemans Bay bar had a terrible time being battered in the surf before she was finally extricated. On the other hand, we’ve had a few capsizes which were easy to manage even though the paddler could not roll or missed their roll. My nephew came out on the Cullendulla bar on a day when the Batemans Bay bar was recording a four metre swell, but he is young and agile and had leapt back in his boat before either Doug or I got to him. I’ve never swum on either bar but it’s probably just a matter of time until I get dumped on the Batemans Bay bar.