Bells Beach - Bowl Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get down to it. The only spot on the cards for this 16-day stretch is Bells Beach - Bowl.

We're looking at a big, powerful groundswell from the SW pushing in. The water temp is sitting at 58°, which is pretty average for this time of year, nothing unusual there.

The week kicks off proper on Friday morning, the 3rd of July. It’s already pumping with a solid 8ft SW swell, but that 22 mph W wind is making things a bit tricky. It’s cleaner in the afternoon as the swell jumps to 12ft and the wind drops to 16 mph from the WSW. The energy in the water is massive (9209), a real freight train of a groundswell with a 16-second period. This is deep water stuff – it’ll be powerful, but for an advanced surfer, that’s the session you want.

Saturday the 4th keeps that 12ft SW swell rolling in the morning, though it's a bit of a cross-off wind. It's still big, but the afternoon gets a little messy with a cross-shore chop as the swell drops to 8ft. Sunday the 5th is a write-off with onshore winds, so don't even bother.

The next real standout window is Monday the 6th. The swell drops right down to 4ft from the SSW, but the wind goes light and cross-off from the North in the morning. It’s clean, mellow, and the combined energy is weak (766) compared to the earlier pulse. A great day for a longboard, not for charging.

After that, the surf drops off for a solid run. We get days of waist-to-chest high, clean but weak leftover swell from Tuesday the 7th through to Monday the 13th. The energy is low (between 238 and 749), and while the winds are often light or offshore, there’s just not enough push to get excited about.

Then, boom. Tuesday the 14th of July looks worth circling on the calendar. The swell refires in the afternoon with a clean 12ft SSW groundswell from a long 15-second period. The wind drops to a gentle 9 mph cross-off from the WSW, and the energy is back up to 5626. It’s a big, clean, powerful swell. This is strictly for experts – anything over 8ft here is for the crew who know what they’re doing.

Wednesday the 15th and Thursday the 16th get battered by strong onshore winds, smashing an 12ft S swell into junk on the 16th. Avoid it. Friday the 17th stays onshore and messy, and by Saturday the 18th the swell fades back to nothing.

The Pick: For the big-wave chargers, Tuesday afternoon, July 14th at Bells Beach - Bowl is the standout. A clean 12ft SSW groundswell with offshore winds and massive energy – that’s your session. For the average punter, Friday afternoon, July 3rd is the best of the initial pulse, but keep your wits about you – it’s a lot of water moving. The long period between sets will help with the paddle out, but it’s still a serious wave.

Stay stoked,
Rusty.

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