Mackenzies Bay

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Mackenzies Bay
Mackenzies Bay Tamarama-1.jpg
View of Mackenzies Bay, looking north-east
Australia New South Wales relief location map.png
Red pog.svg
Mackenzies Bay
Coordinates: 33°53′59″S151°16′23″E / 33.899831°S 151.273131°E / -33.899831; 151.273131
Location Eastern Suburbs, New South Wales, Australia
Offshore water bodies Tasman Sea

Mackenzies Bay is a small embayment in the coast between Bondi Beach and Tamarama Beach in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. It forms part of the shoreline boundary of the suburb of Tamarama. Most of the time, it is a rocky inlet but, at times, depending on prevailing conditions, a sandy beach—known informally as Mackenzies Bay Beach [1] or Mackenzies [2] —comes into existence. Mackenzies Bay is also a well-known surf break. [3]

Contents

Because it is not a permanent beach and is not patrolled, whenever it exists, the beach has become, de facto , a 'dog-friendly beach'. [1] [4] [5] It is not regarded as a safe beach for swimmers, due to its narrow dimensions, not being patrolled, and its difficult access over a rocky and slippery shoreline. If large numbers are using the beach, lifesavers are sometimes diverted there, from adjacent beaches, to watch over those using it. [6]

History of the appearances of the beach

In recent years, the beach existed at times during 2007, [4] 2016, [1] 2019, [7] and 2023. [8]

In the years up to 1947, the beach typically appeared around December and then disappeared around March, with the arrival of southerly gales. [9] [10] [11] The beach then did not reappear until near the end of October 1951. [11] The beach next reappeared in November 1953. [12] Locals reportedly claimed that in 1997—an exceptional year—there was so much sand that, at low tide, it was almost possible to walk between Tamarama and South Bondi; [4] [6] however, given the water depth around the rock platforms between those beaches, that claim is questionable.

In the years between 1997 and 2007, there was no beach. [4] Unusually, in 2007, the beach arrived in May and disappeared in August. That was another exceptional year, and the sand on the beach was estimated to be up to 80m wide and up to 20m in depth. [4] In September 2016, December 2019, and late August 2023, the beach followed its more typical pattern and appeared in time for the beginning of the Australian summer. [1] [7] [8] [13] The latest instance of the beach was disappearing by February 2024. [13] [14]

One theory about the occurrence of the beach relates to the number of storms, hence the overall amount of wave energy impacting the coastline, over a particular period. The better the weather, the lower the wave energy, and the more likely it is that the beach will form. [4] [6] That theory is supported by some apparent temporal association, between the formation of the beach and the global weather phenomena known as El Niño. The combination of swell from a low-pressure system and an offshore wind is believed to particularly favourable, sweeping sand from nearby sandbanks so that it accumulates in the bay. [4] Even when a massive amount of sand is present, such as was the case in 1997 and 2007, the beach can disappear very quickly, once weather conditions change. [4] [6]

Mackenzies Bay
Timeline of El Niño episodes between 1900 and 2024. [15] [16]

It is thought that there have been at least 30 El Niño events between 1900 and 2024, with the 1982–83, 1997–98 and 2014–16 events among the strongest on record. [17] However, there also seem to have been a few El Niño events during which the existence of a beach seems not to have been recorded, albeit these were generally 'weaker' El Niño events. A local lifeguard has observed that short-lived sand dumps are more frequent than is widely observed, sometimes occurring during winter, when less people frequent the area to see such an event occur. [6]

Human history

The area was occupied by local Aborigines, before their dispossession in the years after Sydney was established in 1788. There is a rock engraving at Mackenzies Point depicting marine life. The age of the engraving is not known, but could be up to 2,000 years old. [18] [19]

Mackenzies Bay and nearby Mackenzies Point are named after the Mackenzie family who, from the 1860s to approximately 1926, ran the Waverley Dairy on farmlands that stretched from near the corner of Bondi Road and Denham Street, east to the coast, and as far south as Gaerloch Avenue, Tamarama. [4] [20]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Hansen, Nick (3 October 2016). "Sydney's mystery 'pop up beach'". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  2. "Mackenzies - Beach in Tamarama Waverley NSW". SLS Beachsafe. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  3. "Mckenzies [sic] Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Reports (NSW - Sydney South Coast, Australia)". www.surf-forecast.com. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Waverley Council (2007). "Mackenzies Bay: Waverley's mystery beach".
  5. "Freedom for Dogs vs Freedom From Dogs". The Beast. 28 February 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "'Not for the faint-hearted': People told to stay away from mysterious Sydney beach". ABC News. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  7. 1 2 "Sydney's Disappearing MacKenzies [sic] Bay Beach Has Made a Triumphant Return". Concrete Playground. 18 December 2019. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  8. 1 2 Green, Eli (17 October 2023). "Secret beach at Mackenzies Bay reappears in Sydney's east". news.com.au.
  9. "Sea swallows beach". Daily Telegraph. 12 March 1944. p. 4. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  10. "'Will-of-Wisp' Beach". Sydney Morning Herald . 30 December 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  11. 1 2 "Beach returns". Daily Telegraph (Sydney, NSW : 1931 - 1954). 29 October 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  12. "SWIMMER FORCED FROM SURF". Daily Telegraph . 16 November 1953. p. 2. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  13. 1 2 "Mackenzies Bay Beach Is Back: The Ultimate Sydney Hidden Gem Re-emerges". Visit Bondi Beach. 29 August 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  14. Dalton, Angus (8 February 2024). "Sydney's magical mystery beach is vanishing again". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  15. "Historical El Niño/La Niña episodes (1950–present)". United States Climate Prediction Center. 1 February 2019. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  16. "El Niño - Detailed Australian Analysis". Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Archived from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  17. "El Niño in Australia" (PDF). Bom.gov.au. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  18. Meadows, Elida (August 1999). "Aboriginal History of the Waverley Area - A discussion paper" (PDF). Reference Department, Waverley Library.
  19. "Sydney: Aboriginal Sites". www.visitsydneyaustralia.com.au. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  20. "'Milko!' Dairies in Waverley" (PDF). Published by Waverley Library from sources in the Local History Collection, 2010.
  21. "The Bondi to Tamarama walk". www.bonditocoogeewalk.com. Retrieved 18 March 2020.