Brunswick Heads is a long established fishing village at the mouth of the Brunswick River. It came into existence in the 1850s when cedar cutters began felling timber and using the beach and entrance to load logs. The river entrance is now trained by two rock walls that define the northern end of the beach. The beach (NSW 11) curves gently to the south toward Byron Bay, terminating after 10.5 km at the mouth of Belongil Creek. A vehicle and pedestrian footbridge cross the Brunswick River to provide access to the beach and surf club (Fig. 4.13). The club is located 400 m south of the entrance wall and has adjoining parking, a large park and picnic area. Brunswick Heads is popular with swimmers and fishers, however both have to be wary. The Brunswick River mouth bar is notorious for upending boats, and the beach has a rip-dominated double bar system, with a prominent rip running out against the southern training wall, in addition to strong tidal currents and breaking waves between the training walls. So stay between the flags and clear of the wall. To safeguard the swimmers and fishermen the Brunswick Heads SLSC was formed in 1933. Its members now average 10 rescues a year. The beach is backed by a series of low, well vegetated foredunes up to 1 km wide, then a back barrier depression occupied by the meandering Simpsons Creek in the north and the Belongil Swamp in the south which drains to Belongil Creek, the southern boundary of the beach. Most of the back beach is part of the Tyagarah Nature Reserve, with one access track through the reserve to the beach on the Black Rock Road. read more

Beach Length: 10.6km