New South Wales Beaches
Far South Coast
Merimbula | Merimbula Lake |
Back Beach | Merimbula
Bar Beach | North of Merimbula | Wallagoota
Lake | Tathra | Eden - Twofold
Bay | Mallacoota
Local Shop / contacts
Merimbula Sailboard Club
John Smythe
(02) 6495 6617
Merimbula Tourist Information Centre
for Accommodation details
(02) 6495 1407
MERIMBULA
- 480 km from Sydney, 6 hours from Cronulla, or 7 hours from
Long Reef, and add an hour if you
(a) have kids,
(b) are travelling in summer school holidays,
(c) are a really slow driver or have brought so much gear that you have
to sit on 80kph.
- Follow Highway 1 south and when you come to the top of a hill overlooking
the ocean with a screaming left hand (port tack) bear-away, an ideal
safe learning lake and a classic wind funnel creating ideal slalom/wave
conditions...you're there.
- Type of sailing:
Merimbula Lake
Easy access, grassy shores, adjacent accommodation in units or camp grounds, walk to pub, clubs, restaurants etc. Excellent learning with shallow water, crystal clear, and a sailboard school with tiny sails through to good slalom gear.Back Beach
(Ford Oval) - Nor'easters funnel effect gets small wave boards planing in about 8-10 knots, and bigger slalom or floater boards even earlier. Needs a south swell for wave riding but when this combo happens long, fast bear aways. Easy to get out the back in lighter winds and overall suitable to expert and novice wave riders (just go down the beach for bigger waves). This is also an excellent SLALOM arena and the whole Bay area is good for offshore cruising or coast runs on bigger boards.Merimbula Bar Beach
As the name suggests this small beach is overlooking Merimbula Bar. From here it is easy to rig up on the grass area and sail the Bar, which works in a sou'easterly, a fairly common summer wind that often comes up mid to late afternoon and blows fairly consistently from 15 to 25 knots. Ideal for both wave and slalom but can get a bit hairy in big swells, also launching spot for Bay cruising. Long starboard reaches through waves and good for jumps and back side wave riding. Great launch area: parking, showers. BBQ's etc.
