Kirra as she used to be - 1995

[Trev]

http://www.coastwatch.com.au/SurfBeach/ ... hHome-346/

[rabbity7]

I'm sick of all this old kirra crap. Yeah it used to pump. But superbank is better. If its not atleast its longer. Greenmount is fricken awesome. And kirra still works just not like the old days. And now its uncrowded.

[turtle]

^^ im for kirra over superbank.
couple of the best barrels of my life on that wave

[Trev]

I learned to surf at Kirra in 1963.
Superbank never produces the "Kirra Barrell" type of wave. Sure it was shorter but it was as close to perfection you could get in a wave, on its best days.
I remember arriving there one Saturday morning at dawn, probably about 1987 or early '88.
There was a VERY small wave curling around the point with no one out. I had driven from Brisbane and there was no surf anywhere else so I paddled out.
Over the next hour s a new swell arrived, gradually increasing to overhead.
It caught everyone out and at the end of the hour, still only about a half dozen surfers.
I surfed pretty well 3 hours that day. And was absolutely stuffed even though the rip hadn't kicked in.
One of those freak surfs you never forget.

ps. That's not me in my avatar, but it sure is Kirra at its best.

[steve shearer]

The real tragedy of the loss of Kirra is the loss of the regions finest big-wave spot.
Big Groyne Kirra would hold Hawaiian style 8-10 foot tubes on a high tide.
The Super-wank is breaking out near the shark nets when it's over 4 foot.
I'd drive up from Lennox to surf Kirra on a cyclone swell....the crowd was not an issue over 6 foot.
To be honest the days of the Superbank are now over anyway.
Snapper Rocks is not the Superbank......it was the end section Greenmount into Coolie that supplied unbelievable barrels for a short period of time (02 and 03 were the best years).
At any rate with the set-up of the sand bypass system they could have both with a few tweaks.

[TMC]

I learned to surf at Kirra in 1963.

Did waves even exist back then

[Yuke Hunt]

Saltman asked a question ...
How many real surfers backing the loss of SB actually live and surf within 20 minutes of it??

Me … and this is my take on a sick and sorry situation …
The comments in regards to the superbank being better than “Old Kirra” are ill-founded … the superwank did not exist prior to the demise of Kirra … Greenmount and other breaks that I will cover shortly.
Snapper Rocks is the first section of the over-hyped circus considered to be the superbank … in reality this wave is the combination of three breaks joined together … Snapper through to Rainbow and Greenmount. In my opinion as waves go Greenmount was a better wave than the other two … and Kirra was better than all three put together. Funny thing that because now they are joined together.
Yes … a few years ago the superwank was firing on all cylinders … but the shifting sand from the bypass system affect that break just as it has destroyed not only Kirra but numerous other breaks and a vast ecosystem that was Kirra Reef.
At first the superbank was hailed as a huge success by some high profile locals … but as time went by and the ensuing destruction was noticed … public opinion has shifted.
The destruction of Kirra Reef … the demise of Greenmount … the near extinction of Kirra are only the tip of the suberwanking sand pumping iceberg. No longer do we have world class beach breaks at North Kirra … second groin is lost in a desert … yes Kirra had two breaks a lot of the time. From Snapper Rocks all the way north to Tallebudgera has been affected by the beast. This area produced a vast array of beach breaks that today are pretty much non’existant.
The biggest concern with the superbank mentality is that before the beast reared its ugly head there was a vast choice of breaks to choose from … D’bah all the way through to Currumbin and further north to Burleigh. Now the choice is pretty much limited to D’bah … Snapper … Currumbin and Burleigh. The cause and affect of the sand pumping that created the superbank … has done far and away more damage than good. Yes the wave can be unbelievable but no better than Kirra ever was … and the congestion caused by the demise of all the other breaks is even more unbelievable.
This coming Monday Kirra Surfriders Club are getting together for a paddle out at Kirra … if you are in the area come and join us …
Check this link http://www.kirrasurfriders.com/whats-be ... rra-point/ … and have a look at the picture at the bottom of the link.
Ha … I fart in your general direction ... as if the superwank ever gets that good.

[northeasterly]

I have a hard time seeing anything different in 'old' Kirra (post breakwall) and today's lowtide Greenmount. They both produce the goods in a very similar way.

Yeah yeah. Kirra was better when it was big. Greenmount doesn't handle the size. Kirra has thicker lip. blah blah. How often did Kirra really work? In small to medium size swells I have trouble telling the difference between Greenmount and old Kirra. And there are more small to medium swells.

Wouldn't they rather have a long stretch of bank at Greenmount that can hold a lot of people during different swells or go back to the 'good old days' of Kirra, where there was a very limited takeoff area and a shorter wave that only worked half as much.

There's reports about people campaigning to bring back Kirra - be careful what you wish for.

[steve shearer]

I have a hard time seeing anything different in 'old' Kirra (post breakwall) and today's lowtide Greenmount. They both produce the goods in a very similar way.

You obviously don't live anywhere near the Goldy nor-easter, because low-tide Greenmount over 4 foot is breaking out near the shark nets.
In days pre-96 (shortening of the big groyne) in small to medium swells there was a variety of breaks working on the southern Goldy.
In big swells Big-Groyne handled.
No there is no-where in big swells and small to medium swells are a shitfight at the Super-wank.
It's not that hard to understand.
Also, no-one is talking about dismantling the sand bypass system.
The goal is to clear the excess sand from Kirra, bring back Kirra as a wave and Kirra reef as an ecosystem.
To do this they need to stop dumping dredged sand in Coolangatta Bay, and construct another sand outlet north of North Kirra surf club so excess sand doesn't clog Kirra.
Kirra is a phenomenon and worth saving.

[Nick Carroll]

I reckon there's not much comparison between the SBank and old school Kirra.

Even when the SBank was in full flight in the winters of 2002 and 2003, the wave was pretty straightforward, easy to catch, and struggled over 5' even through its outrageous central section outside Greenmount. It was a freak all right but not exactly of Nature.

Snapper wasn't always like Wategos in the pre-pumping days either; sometimes there'd be sand outside the rock and a nice shallow bank tapering down past Little Marley. After that it'd usually fall to bits of course.

When pre-pumped Kirra opened up in a strong ese swell it handled size, challenged the shit out of you for position, and squared up like no SBank wave's ever managed. You'd just fall into it, draw a line and try to relax. It'd spit back at you in the barrel. On occasion little groyne way down the end created a very SBank Greenmount style barrel; I remember getting a barrel down there and having time to count very slowly to 10 before it seemed like time to work my way out...and on the scale of waves on that particular day, that one scored about a 4.

I'm sure the SBank does deliver more rideable waves per day to the extraordinarily average mass of surfers out there...and there's a fair bit of irony in the way the SBank fable's unfurled, the way everyone was like "No pumping", then "Holy shit! this is the best thing that's ever happened, keep pumping!" back to the "Save Kirra! Who cares about the SBank!" ... while all along, surfers have had absolutely no say in any of it.

But fark, you can have BOTH...or all THREE...ie a clear Tweed opening, a SBank, and Kirra more or less the way she was.

The pumpers have already slowed the pumping rate -- over time (probably two years) you'll see a difference at Kirra from this. But they could do more. Question is, will they even pay attention?

[creased]

http://www.coastwatch.com.au/SurfBeach/ ... hHome-346/

Nice one wave footage of the left in the Southport seaway fun times

[steve shearer]

... while all along, surfers have had absolutely no say in any of it.

The pumpers have already slowed the pumping rate -- over time (probably two years) you'll see a difference at Kirra from this. But they could do more. Question is, will they even pay attention?

Not exactly true Nick, if you follow up on the history of the Sand Bypass Advisory Committee you'll see how certain agendas influenced the outcomes of the Bypass project (and continued to influence it even as it was apparent Kirra was being snowed under).
Also, the pumpers have slowed the pumping rate, not by any reasoned intention to increase wave quality but because the 30 year sand slug on the south side of the Tweed wall (Letitia Spit) was largely pumped in the first couple of years of operation due to the nature of the contract ie they were paid per cubic metre of sand pumped.
One of the main factors is the dredged sand from the rivermouth which is dumped in a grid in Coolangatta Bay by the Port Fredericks barge....the Bay is now 3 metres shallower than in 1996. Net effect is that large swells have their energy diluted before reaching Kirra (ie can't refract properly into the hook of Coolanagatta Bay) and thus the sand is not budging because it is not exposed to any real erosive force.
As far as coastal protection and establishment of a buffer zone for expensive real estate goes it has been a spectacular success......and that is probably the real reason political will seems to be lacking.
Believe me, all the politicians are aware of this issue.

[slowy]

NC.."you counted slowly to 10 in the barrel"!! Fark wish I was that relaxed while getting a 10 second barrel

[2nd Reef]

Wonder what the Currumbin and Burleigh locals think about the prospect of a sand outlet at North Kirra?

[steve shearer]

I'd say they would be stoked. An outlet at North Kirra/Tugun would create a South Straddy style beachbreak in a very favourably aligned stretch of coast.
I doubt it would have any direct effect on the sandbank at Burleigh.
The current sandbar at Currumbin has been diabolical for at least 6 months.
Having an outlet at North Kirra might add more sand to the Tugun-Bilinga stretch of coast and allow the sand bar at Currumbin to fall back to the contour of the point more.
Remember we are talking about one of the most heavily engineered and modified stretches of coastline in the world.
Ripping out all the groynes and the sand bypass system is just not an option.
Therefore it should be managed to create the best quality surfable waves, for a whole range of reasons from economic to recreational amenity.

[2nd Reef]

You're right that the southern Goldy is heavily engineered but when does the engineering stop? Ever?

I think it's worth asking and thinking about that because I think there will be side-affects, not all of them good for surfers. And at the moment the situation is pretty stable.

But then I never surfed 'old' Kirra and I don't gamble.

[steve shearer]

And at the moment the situation is pretty stable.

Yes, and it's worth taking a quick snapshot.
In the middle of another cyclone season with the worlds best wave (or at least top 5) lying buried under millions of cubic metres of sand.
The Superbank just a shadow of it's former self.
Very ordinary banks at the Alley.
An engineered sandflow that could be easily modified to improve things.
Unless you lived around here it's hard to understand the effect on people's pysche of the loss of Kirra.
What if Cronulla Point or Shark Island was destroyed by a harbour proposal or something.
This is Sacred ground.
Where does the engineering end?
In the case of human beings on this planet that is a big question because I don't see any voluntary effort being made by the majority to live in a more sustainable way, therefore engineered solutions will be required.

[2nd Reef]

Last point is great Steve. Really like it.

Got a question though.....was Kirra a really great wave before big groyne went in? I know Rabbit mentions the loss of Kirra in his book - at least until the sand flowed around the corner from Coolangatta and it broke again.

And of course Kirra was a really great wave for those 20 years after big groyne went in.

But did we make that?

Guess what I'm saying is: did we make Kirra sacred ground by putting big groyne in, and the below sea-level barrels were pure serendipity? Or was it sacred ground without any help from man, and the below sea-level barrels were always there.

(my recollection is that it was just an ordinary pointbreak before big groyne)