September 2018 (ROTM#117) Dreamtime Beach, NSW, Australia

Dreamtime Beach is actually the northern end of Kingscliff Beach, which is the second last beach in NSW before you head north into Queensland. In this picture, Dreamtime is in the foreground, the beach beyond it is Fingal Beach and then you can see Tweed Heads and the beginning of Queenslands' Gold Coast.

 Dreamtime is unique in that it's a lovely, quiet 'hidden' gem so close to one of the most busiest coastal stretches in Queensland. This has not gone unnoticed by social media, where it often promoted as one of Australia's best 'secret' beaches and even was rated the third best beach in Australia. This is great. Except that it's not 'secret' anymore.

 Dreamtime is also not patrolled by lifeguards and has been the scene of several tragic drownings in recent years, often caused by rip currents. It was the focus of the recent documentary 'Rip Current Heroes' that I was involved in. 

 This picture is from Jason Markland, who produced Rip Current Heroes and it shows just why Dreamtime can be so dangerous. There's an almost permanent rip against the northern headland, and 3 more channelised rips coming down the beach (the dark gaps). So there's 4 rips in just a 500 metre section of beach! The second rip up from the bottom actually extends way offshore as evident by the plume of turbulent water and sand. Should there be lifeguards at Dreamtime? Absolutely, but it's a very controversial topic at the moment.

 It's a very complicated situation, but a classic problem in Australia where there are many popular, easily accessible beaches that are both unpatrolled and very hazardous. If you want to learn more about the drowning problem at Dreamtime, you can watch Rip Current Heroes here.

One of the most dangerous beaches in Australia