People surfing at Burleigh Heads, Gold Coast, Australia

© Vicki Smith/Getty Image

Surf's up, Down Under

It's International Surfing Day! Here in the UK we may be welcoming summer tomorrow, but these Aussie surfers are saying g'day to some winter waves. Although peak surf season is autumn (that is, our spring) here in the Gold Coast area of Queensland, these tropical beaches offer world-class breaks all year long.

Surfing history runs deep in the South Pacific. Fijians, Tahitians, Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders have been riding the waves here for hundreds of years. It wasn't until the early 1900s that Hawaiian Olympic swimmer Duke Kahanamoku demonstrated the sport for both US and Australian officials, creating a wave of popularity that has yet to break.