Hi all, (sorry for all the posts but you guys are just too helpful and hopefully my questions help other newbs)
Got a week or so off beginning of December and thinking of going to either Burrill or Tabourie for camping...I know Sanctuary point is the hotspot for windsurfing but wanted further down as
a) closer to surfing beaches
b) closer to relatives
Anyone had experience for either....looking for safe spots with some wind to teach the 7 YO. Don't want to drive every time we go out...figured we could rig up and leave the rigs setup all day to save the hassle.
We will probably do a day trip to Sanctuary Pt just to see what everyone raves about tho its just not convenient to us for this trip to stay there. I may stay there in the 2nd week when the wife/young'un return back to Sydney.
^^ you launch at John Williams reserve??? on SP road, works in NE and S but there are options for westerlies as well.
The further south you go the less reliable the wind, SP always seems to deliver the goods.
Burrill Lake, east of the bridge, has a nice sandy bottom. Depth is about 1 metre at best, and the area is quite small, so would be perfectly safe for introducing a 7YO to the sport. Might be too small.
West of the bridge is very protected by the surrounding hills. The winds swirl around, making it counter-productive for teaching.
Cannot help you with Tabourie. Must have a look at it myself, one day.
As Jase says, SP is the go.
In a lighter day, Hyams Beach, in Jervis Bay, is also great for learners. If the prevailing NE is strong, Hyams gets quite a swell. Hyams reputedly has the whitest sand in all the world. ![]()
I don't know how far you want to go but Lake Coila in Tuross Head is a very safe spot for the young one. Park at the recreation club which is off Hector McWilliam drive and there is a nice spot rig and launch. Pretty clean winds in a North Easter.
FWIW...decided and booked a waterfront campsite at BurrilL (Dolphin Point)...its on the east side and is only about 1m deep so the 7YO wont be too worried...and the west side is a bit pongy...apparently Tabourie windsurfing is on the west side of the highway which would mean a drive and defeats the purpose (with a 7 YO their interest is in short bursts but can be channelled into probably 5 or so small sessions a day as they have heaps of energy...even bought a cheap $60 SUP paddle so we can muck around without the rig on).
What I wanted was somewhere close to the beach for the morning surf and somewhere we can setup the windsurfers and leave up all day and just jump on/off (wont be using Mylar sails tho cos of UV damage..found out they are mostly only related to 200 hours UV?).
We have a 2nd week also and may cruise up to Sanctuary point in the first week to check out the site and camping etc for the 2nd week.