14th January 2010 | The Urbanest Team | Comments [0]
Hey Students - Learn to Surf in QLD
For our student surfers, you’re going to love living in South Bank Queensland. Queensland is arguably the spiritual home to surfing in Australia. There’s annual surfing competitions held at local beaches as well as a number of big surf brands who call Queensland their home. To give you some idea of how big surfing is in Queensland, south of Brisbane there’s a beach called Surfer’s Paradise… Awesome right?
Whilst Surfers Paradise sounds like a good beach, the best surfing to be had near South Bank for our students is Burleigh Heads. Burleigh Heads is roughly an hour south of South Bank on the coast and has some pretty excellent facilities for your day out there. There’s public toilets and barbeques should you take a picnic. There’s some Norfolk Island pines you can park yourself under if you’re in between breaks. If you’re by yourself you’ll be pleased to know the beach is patrolled by surf lifesavers every day of the year during business hours.
As you’re looking out the window the morning of your surf, perhaps you could hook into the internet at your student accommodation. Check out coastal watch – an online surf and swell monitor with live cameras on your favorite breaks. This shows wind and weather conditions as well as some footage of the swells, so you can judge if it’s worth rolling out of bed!
If you’re new to surfing, there are LOTS of local surf schools. Lessons are offered by the hour, day or on multiday trips. These tour companies will provide you with a wetsuit and a board to match your skill level. Generally the surf instructors will teach you how to read the swells, weather and currents before you get into the water, to make sure you’ve got no problems getting in and out. Once you’re on the beach, you’ll be instructed on “popping up” onto your board so you can catch waves.
This is easier said than done! On the flat sand is very different to being in the ocean, but being in the water is fun all the same. Fortunately you’ll have a soft landing in the water if you’re a slow learner – and you’ll have time to sign up for another lesson if you’ve enjoyed surfing. Definitely ask about student discounts when you book as most places will be accommodating with prices. Another option is to get a group of your student friends and surf together – after asking for a group rate!
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