In late December last year, on a 26C afternoon, Isaac Ryan and his partner, Zack, were enjoying one of their favourite pastimes – sunbaking and swimming in the secluded white sands and gentle surf of Kings beach in northernNew South Wales, a 20-minute drive south of Byron Bay in Broken Head national park.
The couple had packed a picnic lunch, brought books to read and made the short 1km hike down the lush forested path to arrive at Kings beach, a slice of paradise nestled amid sheltering white booyong, rosewood and red bean trees, with native bush turkeys roaming the undergrowth amid the shady Pandanus trees. The beach has been a significant spot for the LGBTQ+ community for decades, many of whom enjoy being naked here in relative safety.
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But on this particular day, after having been regular visitors for more than seven years, Ryan says his and Zack’s serenity was shattered by the unwelcome presence of two uniformed NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) rangers and a representative from the Aids Council of NSW (Acon) patrolling the beach and telling the bathers that nudity was forbidden.
“We were wearing swimmers. All three approached us, but only the Acon representative spoke. He gestured toward our swimmers and confirmed that we were compliant, but he said that nevertheless he must remind us that it wasn’t a nude beach.” Ryan says the encounter felt “awkward” and left the couple reeling.
“No one was rude but I remember that was the moment I knew Kings was no longer a place where we would feel welcome.”
Despite never having been an official clothing-optional beach, a battle is now reaching boiling point between members of the LGBTQ+ community and NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service over the future of this tiny patch of paradise. The patrolling of Kings beach follows thestripping of the clothing-optional status of Tyagarahbeach, near Byron Bay, which ceased to allow nude bathing in 2024 and has since been patrolled by NPWS.
Late last year, NPWS, which is responsible for the management of Kings, put an alert on its website reading: “Kings beach continues to be a place for the LGBTIQA+ community to enjoy, however due to the increased visitation and the shared nature of this beloved destination, Kings beach is not a clothing-optional area.”
According to Acon, the NPWS approached it for advice on how to communicate the management plan for the beach with the LGBTQ+ community most effectively. “Acon agreed to assist NPWS because we considered that some members of our communities would prefer to hear about changes from an LGBTQ+ organisation rather than government authorities,” an Acon spokesperson says.
“Kings beach has been an important place for our communities for decades, particularly for those who lived through the Aids crisis. Acon has facilitated discussions about the history and significance of the area to the LGBTQ+ community and would support efforts to acknowledge this important history.”
For its part, the NPWS insists it recognises the long connection the LGBTQ+ community has with Kings beach and says it is trying to manage the beach in a respectful way.
“NPWS has been actively working with Acon and recently had a community meeting with representatives from the LGBTIQA+ community to understand how we can support their ongoing use of Kings beach, while providing a safe and respectful experience for all people visiting Kings beach, including the LGBTIQA+ community,” a spokesperson says.
But according to Rohan Anderson, who is managing acampaignfor the cultural recognition of the beach as a safe LGBTQ+ space, the community meeting descended into “farce”.
“Unfortunately [officials] turned it into a meeting which conflated recognising our culture and heritage with informing us of how they planned to mainstream and police our community,” he says.
The LGBTQ+ history of the beach goes back for at least five decades. During the Aids crisis in the 1980s the beach became a haven, with the ashes of several gay men scattered here. Nick Henderson from the Australian Queer Archives says the LGBTQ+ history of the beach isn’t well documented beyond anecdotal accounts because gay life existed covertly in prior decades.
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Today, Kings beach is also a haven for the broader queer community, says Rover Moore, a Lismore local and trans activist who frequents the beach. “For me and my community Kings beach has served as more than just a recreational space – it represents a sanctuary where the complexities of gender and body can be experienced without the usual constraints of society. For many trans individuals including myself, this beach has offered a rare opportunity to exist in one’s body without judgment or expectation.”
Campaigners want to see the beach given special status similar to other beaches overseas includingHanlon’s beach in Toronto, Canada, which was the site of the first Canada Pride in 1971 and was officially recognised by the City of Toronto as a culturally significant queer space last year.
The goal is for Kings beach to be “officially recognised and celebrated as a safe cultural space for LGBTIQ people to go to be able to be themselves, and a space where homophobia and harassment is not tolerated”, Anderson says.
“Tolerating nudity is of course part of that as it’s what many queer people do at gay beaches around the world, but it is certainly only part of our campaign,” he says.
Anderson has written to the NSW climate and environment minister, Penny Sharpe, requesting the beach’s significance to the LGBTQ+ community be recognised under the Broken Head Nature Reserve Plan of Management. Sharpe’s office said the minister wouldn’t be commenting at this time, although she was aware of the situation and planned to take action.
“People go to queer beaches to feel safe, away from the judgement and sometimes violence of mainstream beach users,” Anderson says.
“Kings is the only place we know of that one can hold a same-sex partner’s hand without consciously assessing the risks, judgments, safety or politics of the situation first. It’s true cultural freedom and this needs to be protected.”
The Bundjalung of Byron Bay Aboriginal Corporation (Arakwal), which holds native title rights over Broken Head national park, was also contacted for comment. A spokesperson said that although the area has always been a very special place for Arakwal people, the corporation has not yet arrived on a final position on the current management of Kings beach.