2016 has been a good year so far in border country. The active monsoon pattern over Northern Australia and the adjacent Coral Sea during this time are often conducive to delivering quality east swells to the Northern NSW and southern QLD coastline. Chuck an East Coast Low into the mix and you’ve got points, bars and beachies lighting up from Snapper to Angourie. Thursday afternoon at Snapper Rocks delivered some doozies – and if it wasn’t the session of the week, it was certainly one best documented. Most notably, Steph Gilmore was back in the water on her home turf, riding a hybrid fish shape, and appearing very much in tune with the waves. Wade Carmichael was amoung the standout crew, along with Mitch Parkinson, who was generally the man on the bombs. Bugs (Rabbit Bartholomew) and his son Jagger tore the bag out of a couple of runners, as did Nicki Van Dike.
Around midday the Westpac Helicopter reported spotting a 4.2 metre Great White some 100 metres out to sea from Snapper. The lifeguards cleared the water of swimmers and closed the beach, but the surfers held their ground. At the time of the sighting there were over 100 surfers in the water, said helicopter crew members. News of the grey suit coincided with the turn of the tide and a swell increase, and as such the crowds only got thicker. Lifeguards left the surfers alone; sensing perhaps that passion was greater than fear with waves like these rolling through.
