Alexandria Bay

Alexandria Bay is the reward at the end of a walk, and it is best understood that way rather than as a beach you simply drive up to. It lies on the ocean side of Noosa National Park, a long pale crescent of open Pacific sand with nothing but bushland at its back, reached only on foot along the Tanglewood track or down from the north end of Sunshine Beach. Because everyone who reaches it has walked in, it stays quiet and empty in a way the beaches near Hastings Street never do, and to a photographer's eye it is the most composed shore in Noosa, a clean line of gold sand, dark green headland and a huge sky of moving water.

What you come for is space and light rather than service. The morning light rakes across the sand and the surf throws a fine haze along the shore, and on a clear day you can have a whole stretch of beach to yourself. It is a long established clothing optional beach, easygoing and unbothered, with the northern end most used by those bathing without clothing, so you simply pick the patch that suits your comfort. This is nature over scene in its purest Noosa form, and the walk in and out is part of the pleasure, threading through the coastal heath with the ocean flashing between the trees.

The honest notes are firm ones. There is no road, no kiosk, no toilet, no bin and no built shade, so you must carry water, food, sun cover and a bag for your rubbish and take it all home. The water is the bigger caution, an exposed east facing break with genuine waves and rip currents and no lifeguard anywhere, so it suits confident ocean swimmers on a gentle day and no one in a real swell, and there is no watch to help if things go wrong. Time your visit so you are walking back out well before dark, and check the forecast before you commit to the surf.

Come to Alexandria Bay for solitude, a good walk and the wildest sand in Noosa, and treat the ocean with respect. For patrolled safe swimming and the town scene go to Noosa Main Beach, for a laid back surf and cafe strip choose Sunshine Beach, and for a sheltered cove on the park walk stop at Tea Tree Bay. For the full picture start at the best beaches in Noosa, and to plan your timing see when to go to Noosa.