Lefthanders Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, checkin' in.

We've got a 16-day window on the cards, but it's a rocky road ahead. The kicker is, we've got some serious swell on the way, but this spot is a reef that's going to be handling some serious size. The water’s sitting at 66°F with an anomaly of 3°F, so a touch warmer than you'd expect for this time of year – not a bad thing for a dawn patrol.

Let's get into it. We're looking at Lefthanders as the only game in town. The first call is Thursday the 30th of July. The morning's got a clean 6ft swell from the SW, with a 14-second period giving it some proper grunt. The wind is NNE at 12 mph, which is a cross-off, keeping things tidy. The combined energy is a solid 1931 (moderate wave energy), so there's plenty of push. The afternoon holds up at 6ft, but the wind swings a bit cross, so it'll get a little jumbled. This is a decent start, but it's just a taste.

Friday the 31st is a write-off. That swell jumps to 12ft and 13ft, with a 16-second period, but the wind is a mess – NW cross-on at 22 mph, turning onshore. It's going to be a lumpy, rainy mess. Not worth paddling out.

Now, Saturday the 1st of August and Sunday the 2nd have some serious size. We're looking at 13ft to 16ft swells from the SW. The wind is mixed, with Saturday morning offering a cross-shore, but the swell is just too big for this reef. It's a big-boy territory, really only for the experts. By Sunday afternoon, the wind drops to a glassy 3 mph from the north, and the swell drops to 8ft with a 13-second period. That's a lot more manageable, but the energy is still high at 3110 (moderate). It's a window, but the “marginal” comment means you need to pick your tide.

The rest of the first week and into the second is a brutal run. From Monday the 3rd of August right through to Monday the 10th of August, we are dealing with wave heights consistently over 12ft, often hitting 13ft to 16ft, and with periods of 15-17 seconds. The wind is mostly onshore or cross-on from the west. The combined energy is through the roof, hitting 11,723 (strong) on the 1st and 16,439 (very strong) by the 9th. For a reef, this is a washing machine. It's not surfable for a standard paddle. The setup is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

There is a tiny glimmer on Tuesday the 11th of August. The swell drops to 8ft from the SW with a 14-second period, and the wind is a strong cross-off from the NNE at 25 mph. It'll be clean, but that wind is strong. It's a marginal call.

Then from Wednesday the 12th of August, we get a gale warning. The wind is 31-40 mph, and the swell is 10ft to 15ft with a very long 18-second period. The energy is huge (12,552 on the 13th). This is a total blowout, and for a reef, a long-period swell like that can be dangerous.

The only real standout in this whole outlook is the Thursday the 30th of July morning session. The 6ft SW swell, the 14-second period, and the clean cross-off wind from the NNE make it the best of a tricky bunch. The energy is moderate, and the crowds at Lefthanders are “often” a factor, so expect company. The next best is the Sunday afternoon window on the 2nd of August, but it's a gamble. Everything else is either too big, too windy, or both. It's a sparse run, but that's the hand we're dealt.

Rusty, signing off.

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