Surfing Snapper Rocks

It's the most crowded break in Australia (except for Bondi Beach on Boxing Day, but that hardly counts) and there's a good reason why: The wave is epic and consistent. It's easy to get to, it's an easy enough paddle and if you're early, you can park a few metres away. On a big day you can catch a wave and get barrelled for half a kilometre, on a perfect day, it's the longest, most epic, most tiring wave on the planet. The bottom is mostly sand, so the biggest chance of getting hurt is in the carpark.

Snapper Rocks itself is a typical right-hand Queensland point break, but because of the sand dredging in the area, a giant bank (the superbank) has formed which allows the swell to break over a long distance (see the pics in our history section) . In small conditions Snapper Rocks gently peels off the point, when it gets largers the wave becomes an ultra fast, ultra fun barrel with a tricky takeoff.

On a normal day the ride can be anywhere between 50m and 300m, and on an epic day it's the longest break in the world. When it's breaking along the length of the superbank the wave changes shape a number of times, from the endless tubes at snapper to the sucky bowls further down the line. This is a wave for professionals, and if you look around chances are you'll probably see Joel Parkinson, Rabbit Bartholomew, Mick Fanning or Dean Morrison over your shoulder.