Jacobs Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get straight into it. We’ve got one spot on the menu for the next couple of weeks, and it’s a bit of a mixed bag.

The overall picture starts off with a decent pulse of south-west swell, but it gets real wild, real big, and then settles back down. The water temp is sitting at 15°, which is about 0.8° cooler than usual for this time of year – nothing too crazy, just a touch on the fresh side.

The standout window is the first few days. Wednesday morning, July 29th at Jacobs Bay is where it’s at. We’re looking at a 6 ft swell from the south-west, with a 13-second period and a combined energy of 1229, which is a solid, powerful pulse. The wind is a light north-easterly at 6 mph, blowing cross-offshore. That’s going to keep the surface clean and lined up. It’s a bit of a handful though – that size is over 5 ft, so it’s more suited to experienced surfers. This is a beginner-friendly break, so keep that in mind.

The next decent call is Thursday morning, July 30th. The swell drops a touch to 5 ft, still south-west, and the period holds at 13 seconds. The wind swings to an east-south-easterly at 6 mph, which is offshore. Clean, punchy waves with a combined energy of 878. It’s a fraction smaller, so it’s still a good option, but the Wednesday morning is the pick of the early run.

Saturday morning, August 1st is a sneaky good one. The swell is 5 ft from the south-west with a 14-second period, so it’s a nice long-period groundswell. The wind is a barely-there east-north-easterly at 3 mph, basically glassy. Combined energy is 736, so it’s not as powerful, but the conditions are going to be pristine. For a greener surfer, this is a better bet than the bigger Wednesday session.

Then we get a bit of a lull. Monday morning, August 3rd is worth a mention – the wind is dead calm, glassy conditions, with a 5 ft south-west swell at 12 seconds. Clean as a whistle, but the energy is moderate (790). A good session for a longboard or a funboard.

After that, the swell drops right off. Tuesday morning, August 4th has 3 ft waves and glassy conditions, but it’s small. From August 5th onwards, things go ballistic. The swell jumps over 8 ft, peaking at 15 ft on August 7th and even 15 ft again on August 10th. The combined energy hits four and five digits (over 2000, up to 8233), so it’s a massive amount of water moving. This is strictly for experts only, and even then, the wind is often cross or cross-on, making it lumpy and messy. For a beach break like Jacobs Bay, these big, long-period swells (14-17 seconds) can break too straight and be a real handful. Honestly, for a few days there, the setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The surf backs off a bit around August 12th, but the wind is still strong, and the quality is poor. The long-range outlook around August 13th shows another big spike to 10 ft swell, but again, it’s too big for this spot to be fun.

So, to wrap it up: your best bets are Wednesday morning July 29th for the experienced crew, and Saturday morning August 1st for the cleaner, more manageable conditions. The middle of the run is a write-off for most of us.

Rusty.

Read more