Hi everyone have just taken up windsurfing and love it. Would like to go on a holiday north this winter to NSW looking for somewhere with 20 knots and good coffee. My husband kitesurfs. We have heard Pacific palms or jimmy's beach Hawkes nest are good any comments on the wind in winter at these places?
Winter winds will be unpredictible westerlies. At Jimmy's the wind should be stronger and more consitant due the wind blowing all the way down Port Stephens before hitting the beach there. I sailed there a number of years ago in a westerly all the way over to Nelson Bay and back a few times. A good run but you don't want to get into trouble in the middle as you would end out out at sea.
Not sure about Pacific Palms. The mountains on the western side may be too close for consistant westerlies to develop. It would be a safer place to sail as there is no chance of getting blown away.
With you husband kiting perhaps Jimmys is better as there is more chance of him getting good runs there. Not sure about getting good coffee in either place but Hawkes Nest/Tea Gardens is a bigger and more developed town than Pacific Palms. Though both are probably not up to Melbourne standards.
If you really want a good winter windsurf/kitersurf break you should consider going to Lord Howe Island. A trip is being put together and it sounds like a corker. The wind stats and the description of last year's trip sound fantastic.
I have always wanted to go to lord howe island, though I might get a bit better first, maybe next year. thanks for the info
I've never sailed Jimmy's, but have sailed Pacific Palms (PP) many times. PP is great from any direction between S and NW, anything with east in it has to travel too far over a hill and trees, meaning at PP u gotta go too far out in the bay to get the wind. There are other spots on the lake better in an easterly.
PP is quite shallow, so if you get into trouble the outcome wont be nasty. Mobydisc mentioned the mountains on the westernside, which would be a concern for wind consistency if you were launching from the western side of the bay (I dont even know if PP is accessible from the westside), but launching from the east near the sailboat club, you can sail for a very long way before the wind starts to get dodgey. I am guessing the lake at PP is easily a few kms wide from east to west, so winter winds are not hampered by western mountains. In saying that, unless it is an intense weather pattern, winter westerlies (SW-NW) are not reliable like our NE spring/summer breezes, so you could easily come up for two weeks and not sail at all.
I live at Port Macquarie (80 minutes north of PP), and only ever travel down to PP if the wind is strong up here (and the surf is too wild), as anything with west in it here is too hard to sail. So in the winter months I may get 4-6 sails at PP. Mind you if I lived closer there would be opportunities during the week, I just live and work too far away from PP to take advantage of PP in winter on work days.
I hope this helps. Gabe Kelleman and his wife run the windsurfing school at Pacific Palms (I am presuming they still do....I havent sailed with them since last winter). If you need more info, google the sailboard school to get the business ph number. If you have no luck with that, pm me and I will send you his mobile.
Regards, Adam
So the westerlies are reasonably consistent at Pacific Palms? Whats the water state like in strong westerlies?
westerlies and sou-westers are good fun at PP. Onshore but easy to get off the beach at the sailing club. You can sail for k's out towards the other side and if anything goes wrong its shallow and you can drift back.
There is a fair amount of ribbon weed that comes in when its been blowing for awhile. Plus the water is warmer than most spots due to it being so shallow.
All in all its a great spot to sail from, grassy rigging, showers and toilets and five minutes from Blueys and Boomerang beaches for food and accommadation.
Forster and Tuncrurry are 10 minutes the other way.
PP's sounds a good spot for sailers like me, getting older and not so radical!!!
Will check it out next time I pass through that way.
Thanks for the good info.
Cheers!!
not to mention that also near PP there are great surfing beaches like Boomerang, Blueys, Sandbar and somewhere else a little further south
thanks for the info, looks like we should pack the surfboards as well.... might need a trailer. I think PP is winning at the moment, have heard there is a cafe at the sailing club, can drive to Jimmy's and Port Macquarie from there depending on the wind.
