It's a 'visit Oz trip' with the missus (not specifically a wind trip). But my pal Nick is an avid sailor and he's going to set me up with a mate of his with winging gear to spare. Anyway I hope to get out at least one day. Nick says the launch spot will be either Applecross Foreshore or Pelican Point. I will be in Perth 1/5-1/11. If you hear an American accent at either of those launches, it's probably me. I hope you stop by to say hello.

Cheers,

Jeff (Stumbleweed)

Next week is going to be fire, I would try and get more than one session, or an excellent window for a trial separation from your partner?

Secondly, we have arguably the best metro downwinder in the world, I would get out in the swell rather than the river if ya can.

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Stumbleweed said..
I will be in Perth 1/5-1/11.

And for all the Australians, 5/1 - 11/1.

Welcome to Perth Stumbleweed - hope you get some good wind while here.

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CH3MTR4IL5 said..
Next week is going to be fire, I would try and get more than one session, or an excellent window for a trial separation from your partner?

Secondly, we have arguably the best metro downwinder in the world, I would get out in the swell rather than the river if ya can.

Where do you suggest chasing swell?

It is mostly straight coast so anywhere has swell. It depends a bit on your confidence level, eg on bashing through shorebreak and what is convenient location-wise.

There are easy entry points at Port Beach or Leighton's in Fremantle but this area has a bit less swell, then more exposed as you go further north (loosely).

Next spot north is Swanbourne, just north of Grant street beach past the small headland - in between Leighton's and Swanbourne there is a few reef sections and it is probably best to avoid this whole stretch for launching unless you have a local with you.

Then city beach beside the northern groyne (don't go to the south one as this is usually flagged for swimming), which is a bit more exposed but the only real pick between swanbourne and city's.

Then its mostly exposed beach break through until Trigg point, there is a little spot at Bennion beach you can get out at, then North beach (south of the jetty), then Marmion beach (Troy ave entrance).

After that, the north side of Hillary's breakwater provides a really easy entrance and some flat water, and you can get out the back to some moderate sized swell.

My pick for solid waves is North beach, it is sheltered for a reasonably easy entry and you are straight into some solid swell on a perfect angle for upwind-downwind. If that looks like a hard entry, then Troy ave has a sheltered deep section that lets you get up and out through the break. If it all looks too hectic, then either Port or Hillary's.

Downwind run options depending on length and commitment levels:

Port Beach or Swanbourne to City Beach [common SUP run]
City Beach to Sorrento [northern folk common SUP/parawing run]
Bennion to Sorrento
Port to Sorrento (longest realistic run you can do).

A lot of wingers go City to Sorrento, if you get in early the entry is fine, and then Sorrento is much more sheltered so the exit is not too much of a drama once the wind picks up and the swell ramps in.

There are dedicated swimming areas on most perth beaches at regular intervals, with lifeguards present. These are marked by red and yellow flags at each end of the patrolled area (usually 50-100m wide) - STAY 200m OFFSHORE and don't launch/come ashore in these areas (in particular if you are finishing at city's or sorrento you will be coming in near these).

Thanks for the detailed local breakdown. Are there many hazards of a marine biological nature to avoid?

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Stumbleweed said..
Thanks for the detailed local breakdown. Are there many hazards of a marine biological nature to avoid?

shark-wise, nothing notable in last five years in the metro area - last two major attacks have been bull sharks in the river.

in 25 years of extensive time on the water I've seen two small hammerheads and a tiger shark that was resident at hillary's, and had two interactions kitesurfing (a GW hit me from below and dented my board at secret harbour and a tiger that I hit at speed and snapped my board a fair way offshore at Scarborough). Both of those were around salmon spawning later in the year.

You can download an app called 'SharkSmart'. It lists any sightings of bigger sharks in the metro or popular areas. In summer there are helicopter patrols running up and down the coast most days. Only sharks I have seen locally are small hammerheads.

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CH3MTR4IL5 said..
a tiger that I hit at speed and snapped my board a fair way offshore at Scarborough

Far out that doesn't sound fun!

The odd issue

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dieseagull said..

CH3MTR4IL5 said..
a tiger that I hit at speed and snapped my board a fair way offshore at Scarborough

Far out that doesn't sound fun!

yeah scared the crap out of both of us, it thrashed around and bolted and I tried to do the same, tried to ride the board back but the delaminated section kept acting as a brake and too many sharp edges so ended up with a long post-sunset body drag.

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CH3MTR4IL5 said..

Stumbleweed said..
Thanks for the detailed local breakdown. Are there many hazards of a marine biological nature to avoid?

shark-wise, nothing notable in last five years in the metro area - last two major attacks have been bull sharks in the river.

in 25 years of extensive time on the water I've seen two small hammerheads and a tiger shark that was resident at hillary's, and had two interactions kitesurfing (a GW hit me from below and dented my board at secret harbour and a tiger that I hit at speed and snapped my board a fair way offshore at Scarborough). Both of those were around salmon spawning later in the year.

This has to be the most West Australian answer to that question ever. Sharks?? Nah not much of a problem hardly anything for 5 years ( forgets fatal shark attack at Port beach November 21 ). Ive been on the water 25 years and never had a problem other than the time a great white bumped me off my board and the other time I had a head on collision with a tiger shark

@ tumbleweed, yes sharks are definitely an issue in WA but it doesn't stop us. Just try not to stop and flap around for too long out deep. Definitely don't download the shark smart app as Baldy suggested it just says bloody sharks everywhere always

Not a new issue this was me in 78

Then there is the feckn dolphins
?si=j3tf9JCa_KAk4fXk

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hilly said..

The odd issue

Yep. Saw your 'Fark' post. That's what I had in mind when I asked about critters.

Seems you were further south though so no worries close to Perth I guess.

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Youngbreezy said..

CH3MTR4IL5 said..

Stumbleweed said..
Thanks for the detailed local breakdown. Are there many hazards of a marine biological nature to avoid?

shark-wise, nothing notable in last five years in the metro area - last two major attacks have been bull sharks in the river.

in 25 years of extensive time on the water I've seen two small hammerheads and a tiger shark that was resident at hillary's, and had two interactions kitesurfing (a GW hit me from below and dented my board at secret harbour and a tiger that I hit at speed and snapped my board a fair way offshore at Scarborough). Both of those were around salmon spawning later in the year.

This has to be the most West Australian answer to that question ever. Sharks?? Nah not much of a problem hardly anything for 5 years ( forgets fatal shark attack at Port beach November 21 ). Ive been on the water 25 years and never had a problem other than the time a great white bumped me off my board and the other time I had a head on collision with a tiger shark

@ tumbleweed, yes sharks are definitely an issue in WA but it doesn't stop us. Just try not to stop and flap around for too long out deep. Definitely don't download the shark smart app as Baldy suggested it just says bloody sharks everywhere always

You Aussies are a tough bunch. Am I to understand that the river in Perth is also snarky? River sharks?

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Stumbleweed said..

Youngbreezy said..

CH3MTR4IL5 said..

Stumbleweed said..
Thanks for the detailed local breakdown. Are there many hazards of a marine biological nature to avoid?

shark-wise, nothing notable in last five years in the metro area - last two major attacks have been bull sharks in the river.

in 25 years of extensive time on the water I've seen two small hammerheads and a tiger shark that was resident at hillary's, and had two interactions kitesurfing (a GW hit me from below and dented my board at secret harbour and a tiger that I hit at speed and snapped my board a fair way offshore at Scarborough). Both of those were around salmon spawning later in the year.

This has to be the most West Australian answer to that question ever. Sharks?? Nah not much of a problem hardly anything for 5 years ( forgets fatal shark attack at Port beach November 21 ). Ive been on the water 25 years and never had a problem other than the time a great white bumped me off my board and the other time I had a head on collision with a tiger shark

@ tumbleweed, yes sharks are definitely an issue in WA but it doesn't stop us. Just try not to stop and flap around for too long out deep. Definitely don't download the shark smart app as Baldy suggested it just says bloody sharks everywhere always

You Aussies are a tough bunch. Am I to understand that the river in Perth is also snarky? River sharks?

Yes, there are Bull Sharks in the river. There's been a couple of attacks in the past few years - one fatal. These are the first attacks in the Swan River in decades (other than dogs disappearing). They travel a long way up the river to pup and there are some large ones. A 3m Bull was supposedly spotted above Guildford where the river is barely 50m wide. Unfortunately, in WA, unless you find a lake or dam with decent wind, you are sharing the water with sharks.

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Stumbleweed said..Seems you were further south though so no worries close to Perth I guess.

Recent Incidents (Perth Area)
March 2025 (Port Beach): A swimmer was bitten by a tiger shark but survived, receiving treatment at a local doctor's surgery after being helped to shore.
November 2021 (Fremantle): Paul Millachip, 57, was killed by a great white shark at Port Beach, a fatal attack near Perth.
June 2016 (Mindarie): A diver died after an attack by a large shark, reported to be over 5 meters long.

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Stumbleweed said..

You Aussies are a tough bunch. Am I to understand that the river in Perth is also snarky? River sharks?

There have been 2 fatal shark attacks in the Swan river, about 100 years apart - safe to say it's a rare occurrence.

Based on the last five years in Western Australia, you are around 300x more likely to be killed in a motor vehicle accident than by a shark.

^^^^ if you could get up to the speed limit without 3 lanes across doing 10under
I found the shark tagging project a few years back to be reassuring. Watching only the ten big whities they tagged, go up and down the coast each day made me think in 20yrs of windsurfing I'd gybed right near them many times. They're not interested in us. now a foil or booger in confused water state is a bit different but still - agree the drive to the beach is far less safe

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Youngbreezy said..


This has to be the most West Australian answer to that question ever. Sharks?? Nah not much of a problem hardly anything for 5 years ( forgets fatal shark attack at Port beach November 21 ). Ive been on the water 25 years and never had a problem other than the time a great white bumped me off my board and the other time I had a head on collision with a tiger shark

@ tumbleweed, yes sharks are definitely an issue in WA but it doesn't stop us. Just try not to stop and flap around for too long out deep. Definitely don't download the shark smart app as Baldy suggested it just says bloody sharks everywhere always

Yeah I guess it was a bit of a ham-fisted way to say that even if you spend a lot of time on the water, your odds of an interaction with a shark are extremely low, and being in an attack is even lower (and up until a few months ago I would have said that the chance of being attacked while on foil was nonexistent). There are a lot of people windsurfing, kitesurfing, winging and foiling regularly here and statistically speaking none of us have been killed by a shark, and nearly all attacks are freedivers, swimmers and surfers sitting in the water, which we don't do much of.

[The GW definitely was having a go at me, and sent me 2m in the air while I was getting up on my board but it was after sunset during salmon season at secret harbour, the other couple of times I was inadvertently the aggressor (I forgot I also hit a tiger at Hillary's with my foil).]

As DTee says, you're definitely more likely to be killed by a BYD shark than a WA shark. Not that statistics help the individual, but if you managed to find a shark in a week-long visit to Perth I'd be pretty astonished.

I went out in the river yesterday and had a really nice time. No sharks to speak of but so many large moon jellies. As I foiled along it they went thunk thunk thunk against my mast/foil. I was glad they were not of the stinging variety.

Unfortunately, I won't have time get out on the ocean. Maybe next time I visit Perth. Thanks all for of the local insight.

If you went out yesterday and were happy in the rubbish up n down light seabreeze, today would have been a revelation

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Mark _australia said..
If you went out yesterday and were happy in the rubbish up n down light seabreeze, today would have been a revelation

True. It's looked great. I'lll need to plan a dedicated foiling trip sometime in the next few years.

For now, it's about foiling-marriage balance.