Beach number: nsw449
Includes beaches: Bherwerre
State/Region: ACT - Sussex Inlet
Beach name: BHERWERRE
General Beach Hazard Rating: 7
Least hazardous: 1-3
Moderately hazardous: 4-6
Highly hazardous: 7-8
Extremely hazardous: 9-10
Hazard rating refers to physical beach and surf conditions ONLY and does not include potentially dangerous marine life.
Beach

Bherwerre Beach (NSW 449) is the longest, highest energy beach on the south coast. The 7 km long beach occupies much of Wreck Bay, a 9 km wide south-facing bay bordered by St Georges Head to the east. Sailing ships heading up to Sydney were wary of this beach as they endeavoured to stay far enough seaward to clear the bay and its eastern heads. The beach is bordered by a 30 m high rocky headland in the north and the mouth of Sussex Inlet to the south, while it is backed by the largest transgressive dunes south of the Myall Lakes. These now vegetated dunes extend up to 4 km inland, to heights of 50 m and are largely backed by St Georges Basin. The beach can be reached on foot via a 400 m long track from the Cave Beach camping area, and in the south off gravel road that leads to the small camps at Christian Minde and Lumeah. The long beach in between can only be accessed on foot.

The beach receives all swell out of the east and southeast with the waves averaging 1.6 m. These combine with the fine to medium beach sand to produce a double bar system the length of the beach. The inner bar is usually attached and cut by rips every 200-300 m (Fig. 4.341), resulting in up to 30 rips along the beach, while the outer bar has more widely spaced rips and a deep trough. There is a permanent rip against the northern rocks, while at the southern end the shifting tidal shoals and channels of Sussex Inlet create additional variations in the surf.

Some swimmers and surfers walk across from Cave Beach in the north, or from the camps in the south. Be very cautious along the entire beach as strong rips dominate, with a deep trough offshore and more rips seaward. Stay on the attached inner portions of the bars and avoid the rip holes and feeder currents.

Numerous beach breaks abound with the northern end being the most accessible and having good summer conditions, when north winds blow offshore.

There are numerous rip gutters right along the beach, together with Sussex Inlet at the south end.

Type: Formal parking area
Spaces: 10