Beachgoers were awestruck and surfers were ecstatic when an unusual event occurred on the Sunshine Coast during the weekend.
A crowd gathered to watch and ride perfect waves forged by a runout from Currimundi Lake after heavy rain.
Stuart Cordingley was among those to witness it and shared a video of surfers and bodyboarders having the time of their lives.
“The lads there were very confident and experienced,” he said.
“Although the current was strong, it is not dangerous for experienced surfers.
“The lifeguards were in the background keeping an eye on things.”
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He said the waves were rare.
“Every four to five minutes a combination of the flow speed, the position of the sand base and the tide created a one metre rideable wave,” he said.
“Half a dozen local surfers were taking advantage of the conditions created by the runout tide.
“I have only seen it this good on rare occasions and it usually only lasts for a few hours.”
The clip captured plenty of attention on social media.
“That’s insane,” Lauren Roberts said.
“How good is that?” Dave Spiller added. “I dream of this: epic,” Ariel Albert exclaimed.
“They look like they’re having so much fun,” Karen Johnson said.
“So impressive,” Tiffany Gray Slade stated. “Not for the faint-hearted,” Amy Bennett added.
But not everyone was impressed.
“Hope you’re all not sick from that water. It’s super polluted,” Paul Bevear said.
The runout happens just a few times a year.
It can occur when locals break open the lake to form their own wave or when Sunshine Coast Council opens the late using machinery.
Mr Cordingley said council had created the latest event.
“On this occasion, the lake and the canals were very full, and the council posted a story of them opening the lake to relieve the risk of flooding (on Saturday morning).”
He said the waves would last “until the tide turns or the opening gets too wide … usually only a few hours.”
Local Kyle O’Donnell has previously told Sunshine Coast News that the conditions need to be perfect for the event to occur.
“There is more to it than just shovelling sand to successfully create the stationary wave,” he said.
“You can only do it when there is a lot of rain and the lake has to be full.
“You have to wait because it might not even work. If you don’t open it the right way or have the right current, nothing will happen.”
