South of the river surfer Steve ‘Horny’ Campbell started getting lifts down south when he was age 15. By 1968 he was surf addicted and driving down south every weekend.
During the late 60s and early 70s Horny joined other WA surfers on the long trip across the Nullarbor to surf good waves on Phillip Island in Victoria.
In 1973 Horny headed north from Phillip Island in Victoria to Queensland. These are his comments and happy snaps of his East Coast surf trip.
In 1972 I drove my Yellow Kombi across the dusty Nullarbor to Phillip Island in Victoria with my Busselton girlfriend. When winter came along in Victoria my girlfriend and I headed north for warmer waters. In 1973 we surfed Byron and Lennox in NSW on route to Queensland.
Photo: 1973 ‘The Pass’ surf break at Byron Bay. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1973 Lennox Head point break. Steve Campbell pic.
In Lennoxthere was young bloke who towed toys around the streets behind a wheel barrow. We called him Stop/Start because he was always stopping & starting. The toys included Tonka toys, graders etc. You can see his toys being towed along the road in this pic.
Photo: 1973 young bloke with his wheelbarrow and toys at Lennox. Steve Campbell pic.
In Queensland we stumbled on Caloundra and made it home. I worked as a sparky and my girlfriend got a job in a bank. I celebrated my 21st birthday at the Caloundra pub. We stayed in Caloundra for two years.
Photo: 1973 Horny’s Caloundra rental house. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1973 Horny’s front yard at Caloundra with view over the beach. Steve Campbell pic.
We used to turn water sprinkles on in the front yard to attract those varmint Cane toads. Then using hockey sticks we would herd them ontothe road until cars came along and ran them over. We would see how many we could get crunched in one go. We were animals!
Photo: 1973 Caloundra Beach with Bribie Island in background. Steve Campbell pic.
Bribie Island is the smallest and most northerly of three major sand islands forming the coastline sheltering the northern part of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia.
We used to walk out on the spit (on the left) and paddle across the channel to go surfing on Bribie Island.
When there was no swell in Queensland, we would drive south to Lennox and Byron in northern NSW for the weekend.
Photo: 1973 Eric McCain (WA) and Horny playing on kids swings at Caloundra. Steve Campbell pics.
Photo: 1973 Busso surfers visiting our place in Caloundra. Steve Campbell pic.
John Wright is on the right, others unidentified.
Photo: 1973 Horny and unidentified in Caloundra. Steve Campbell pic.
When we saw big storm fronts/cyclones were going to hit our part of the Coast, we would take time off work and head up the coast to Noosa. We would arrive early before the MaroochyRiver flooded and passage north become inaccessible. By the time the flooded river receded and other surfers got to Noosa, the swell would be on the wane and we were heading home.
Photo: 1973 Tea Tree bay wave line-up at Noosa. Steve Campbell pic.
I went on a surf trip to Double Island Point (DI) with three other guys in a VW sedan. There no waves at DI, so we decided to drive further north and camp at Rainbow Beach overnight.
We passed a ship just off the beach with Asians standing on the deck waving to us. They yelled out to us, but we couldn’t understand them. So we told them ‘we no understand’ and drove onto Rainbow Beach.
Unfortunately on route, the VW conked out and as there were mossies everywhere, the four of us slept in the VW with a lot of warm smoke! In the middle of the night we heard ‘bang, bang’ on the roof of VW. There were Asians all around car and we told them to ‘piss off’ and went back to sleep.
The next morning we took the VW distributor apart, fixed the car and drove back along the sandy beach.
That’s when we discovered the shiphad been washed ashore overnight and the Asians were seeking our help. Gulp!
Photo: 1973 Horny and mates standing next to the ship wreck near Double Island Point. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1974 Horny’s kombi and unidentified Victorian surfer in the main street of Caloundra. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1974 the dashboard and steering wheel on Horny’s VW Kombi. Steve Campbell pic.
In 1974 Horny and his girlfriend drove the yellow Kombi back to WA and settled in the South West.
South of the river surfer Steve ‘Horny’ Campbell started getting lifts down south when he was age 15. By 1968 he was surf addicted and driving down south every weekend.
During the late 60s and early 70s Horny joined other WA surfers on the long trip across the Nullarbor to surf good waves on Phillip Island in Victoria.
Click on this link to view Horny’s 1960-70s Phillip Island surf trips published 14 June 2017.
In 1973 Horny headed north from Phillip Island in Victoria to Queensland. These are his comments and happy snaps of his East Coast surf trip.
In 1972 I drove my Yellow Kombi across the dusty Nullarbor to Phillip Island in Victoria with my Busselton girlfriend. When winter came along in Victoria my girlfriend and I headed north for warmer waters. In 1973 we surfed Byron and Lennox in NSW on route to Queensland.
Photo: 1973 ‘The Pass’ surf break at Byron Bay. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1973 Lennox Head point break. Steve Campbell pic.
In Lennox there was young bloke who towed toys around the streets behind a wheel barrow. We called him Stop/Start because he was always stopping & starting. The toys included Tonka toys, graders etc. You can see his toys being towed along the road in this pic.
Photo: 1973 young bloke with his wheelbarrow and toys at Lennox. Steve Campbell pic.
In Queensland we stumbled on Caloundra and made it home. I worked as a sparky and my girlfriend got a job in a bank. I celebrated my 21st birthday at the Caloundra pub. We stayed in Caloundra for two years.
Photo: 1973 Horny’s Caloundra rental house. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1973 Horny’s front yard at Caloundra with view over the beach. Steve Campbell pic.
We used to turn water sprinkles on in the front yard to attract those varmint Cane toads. Then using hockey sticks we would herd them onto the road until cars came along and ran them over. We would see how many we could get crunched in one go. We were animals!
Photo: 1973 Caloundra Beach with Bribie Island in background. Steve Campbell pic.
Bribie Island is the smallest and most northerly of three major sand islands forming the coastline sheltering the northern part of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia.
We used to walk out on the spit (on the left) and paddle across the channel to go surfing on Bribie Island.
When there was no swell in Queensland, we would drive south to Lennox and Byron in northern NSW for the weekend.
Photo: 1973 Eric McCain (WA) and Horny playing on kids swings at Caloundra. Steve Campbell pics.
Photo: 1973 Busso surfers visiting our place in Caloundra. Steve Campbell pic.
John Wright is on the right, others unidentified.
Photo: 1973 Horny and unidentified in Caloundra. Steve Campbell pic.
When we saw big storm fronts/cyclones were going to hit our part of the Coast, we would take time off work and head up the coast to Noosa. We would arrive early before the Maroochy River flooded and passage north become inaccessible. By the time the flooded river receded and other surfers got to Noosa, the swell would be on the wane and we were heading home.
Photo: 1973 Tea Tree bay wave line-up at Noosa. Steve Campbell pic.
I went on a surf trip to Double Island Point (DI) with three other guys in a VW sedan. There no waves at DI, so we decided to drive further north and camp at Rainbow Beach overnight.
We passed a ship just off the beach with Asians standing on the deck waving to us. They yelled out to us, but we couldn’t understand them. So we told them ‘we no understand’ and drove onto Rainbow Beach.
Unfortunately on route, the VW conked out and as there were mossies everywhere, the four of us slept in the VW with a lot of warm smoke! In the middle of the night we heard ‘bang, bang’ on the roof of VW. There were Asians all around car and we told them to ‘piss off’ and went back to sleep.
The next morning we took the VW distributor apart, fixed the car and drove back along the sandy beach.
That’s when we discovered the ship had been washed ashore overnight and the Asians were seeking our help. Gulp!
Photo: 1973 Horny and mates standing next to the ship wreck near Double Island Point. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1974 Horny’s kombi and unidentified Victorian surfer in the main street of Caloundra. Steve Campbell pic.
Photo: 1974 the dashboard and steering wheel on Horny’s VW Kombi. Steve Campbell pic.
In 1974 Horny and his girlfriend drove the yellow Kombi back to WA and settled in the South West.
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