Narrowneck is the name of a narrow bit of coastline that separates the anabranch of the Nerang River from the southern end of Main Beach and the northern end of Surfers Paradise beach.
The highway connecting Sydney to Brisbane was constructed at Narrowneck in 1920 and by 1921 it became necessary to build the Gold Coast's first seawall out of timber. A series of seawalls were constructed at Narrowneck over the years including materials like car bodies, old trucks and buses filled with concrete, dumped concrete from old buildings, rocks and boulders.
In 1971 the Dutch University Delft completed a report for the Queensland State Government recommending the construction of a groyne at Narrowneck. The Gold Coast City Council examined the idea of a groyne and instead constructed an artificial reef to stabilise the foreshore at Narrowneck. So far the reef has worked well as a coastal control point, but has been disappointing in its secondary objective to improve surfing. A surprising benefit of the Narrowneck Reef has been its ability to attract marine growth and reef fish and is now a popular diving and fishing location. Many Nudists are attracted to this beach. Narrowneck is particularly popular for kite surfing and longboarding.