-
Winter's Day with clean groundswell from the optimum direction and offshore winds. According to CT surfer and born and bred local Adam Melling "Pretty much the best it ever gets. You don't get it like that often." A day locals live for. Bring manners and patience. Photo: Andrew Shield
-
There's always been a deep talent pool drawn to the Point but the small town of 3000 people now hosts two men's WT surfers and a representative on the Women's WT. Adam Melling transfers the inherent down-the-line speed of the wave into a deep carve back into the pocket. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Local gardener Marcus Aboody will be the best guy in the water on any given day at the Point. He's a mentor to the new crew coming up, as well as established pros like Melling. Here he threads an open one from his favorite corner wedge section. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Daniel Thompson hooking hard in the pocket on a self-made carbon-fiber fish. Dan swung hard left from the mainstream after being influenced by Richard Kenvin and has now incorporated Simmons' hydrodynamic principles into a new vanguard of high performance surfboard design. The long walls of the Point, as they were for the proponents of the shortboard revolution, offer the perfect surfboard testing track. Photo: Billy Watts
-
The broad brow of Lennox Headland is ancient lava flow from the Wollumbin super volcano. Its ability to refract any swell from the Tasman or Coral Sea into high quality point surf is unrivaled amongst the plethora of pointbreaks in the region. In the '60s when it was a working cow paddock, surfers would drive along the Point and camp out for days, waking up to a view like this. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Dan Thompson guiding visiting surfers down the track with an eye on the impending rock-off. Lennox Point is a time-honored stop on the Australian surfing Songline. The exchange between local and visiting surfers has been mostly fertile ground in the continuing quest for improved surfboard design. Photo: Billy Watts
-
Rasta lives just up the road at Broken Head and is a frequent visitor to the Point, blazing on the full gamut of surfboard design. That's probably four fins he's busted out on the coping. "Rasta throwing the fins," says Melling. "Looks mental, that shot." Photo: Craig Parry
-
The A-team for Le-Ba boardriders after winning the Jim Beam Surftag held at the local beachbreak. L-R Adam Melling, Marcus Aboody, Owen Wright, Stu Kennedy. Photo: Craig Parry
-
"Looks like a fun day trying to get in at the rocks," says Melling. You won't find Gold Coast crowds at Lennox Point but the lineup is well regulated by a skilled local crew who like a cup of concrete for breakfast. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Recent blow-in Owen Wright rotating off the end section. Onshore days see huge punts being thrown down by a highly-skilled crew of local aerialists. Photo: Craig Parry
-
"Not a bad place to wake up to every morning," says Melling. Small, super clean winter morning. The dawn patrol crew are out in the dark every day so chill with a cup of Joe on the headland and wait for the second shift if you're passing through. Tuning into tidal phases and crowd shifts pays big dividends for locals and visitors alike. Respect and good manners are always good currency in a surf village like Lennox. Photo: Craig Parry
-
A charger now more widely known for negotiating heavy water at Teahupoo and Pipeline, Anthony Walsh cut his teeth at the Point. Here he sizes up the rock-off before committing to a line. Negotiating entry and exit on big days is a constant war of attrition for local surfers. Boards and bodies will pay the piper. That's a given. Photo: Craig Parry
-
"Mikey. Another one from the Wright clan doing what they do best," says Melling. Local super-grom stuffs a frothy little drainer. He spearheads a next generation of kids already tearing up the Point. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Super clean east swell from the famous July 2001 swell. Those front condos might be eyesores, but no doubt they have the best view in Lennox. Photo: Andrew Shield
-
"Joey Hudson smashin' this one like he smashes most waves," says Melling. When the Point is on, he'll down his tools in a heartbeat. One of the best when it's big and hollow. Photo: Andrew Shield
-
Former well-decorated WCT surfer Danny Wills (along with Kieren Perrow) has a large body of work at all the local pointbreaks. His technically precise style remains perfectly suited to Lennox Point. Photo: Billy Watts
-
"Boulders: fat burgers, and a big paddle," explains Melling. Indeed, surrounding pointbreaks can bleed off the excess crowds and occasionally offer A-class days of their own. This spot is renowned for death-defying rock-offs at size with several fatalities. Photo: Andrew Shield
-
Melling eying off a curved ramp whilst an appreciative onlooker takes mental notes from the shoulder. "Line off that grommet's leg -- ready to cut him off," laughs Melling. Photo: Craig Parry
-
"When you're sitting in the lineup on a morning like this, you're usually looking in, waiting for these guys to get rolled on the rocks," says Melling. Patience and judgement, the two most important qualities when preparing to rock-off, are hard to maintain when you see these things spinning through the line-up unridden. The rocks here support a strong cottage industry of ding-fixers, whilst the local medical center keeps betadine in kegs. Photo: Craig Parry
-
"There's usually plenty of waves around," says Melling. The beachies stretch for miles in either direction and offer hard-up goofies the occasional moment of tubular respite. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Local groms earning their stripes while the old man points out the key features. Seaweed and razor-sharp barnacles keep the attention focused. Photo: Craig Parry
-
"Mirage. Sometimes it's not that great, but it looks good there," says Melling. An unattended gem slips through the inside section. It doesn't take too many of these on a warm autumn's morning to red-line the stoke meter. Make sure you look inside before you go. Photo: Andrew Shield
-
You don't see too many water shots of the Point due to the current and rocks. You know it's clean and perfect when you do. Stu Kennedy dragging arms through the racetrack section. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Can't get there from here. The Lennox lament: dealing with the high-tide rock-off to get out there and get a chunky open one. Everyone pays the price of impatience. That looks like Pelican Pete in the slot. Photo: Craig Parry
-
Adam Melling: "This is my home and I don't think I'll ever leave it." Words inscribed in the heart of every Lennox local. Photo: Andrew Shield
-
