Little Joes/Between the Jetties Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, let’s talk about what’s firing in the Little Joes zone.

To be straight with you, the whole 16-day window looks like a bit of a battle. There’s swell coming, but the wind is the real villain here. It’s nearly always a cross-breeze or cross-onshore, and often strong, which means the wave face is going to get chopped up and lumpy. This isn’t a spot that’s forgiving when the wind is up. For the first week, the scores are a flat zero; the surf is described as poor. There’s a small window of 'marginal' surf on Wednesday the 5th and Thursday the 6th, but with light cross-onshore wind and small swell, it’s a struggle.

The pattern shows that from Tuesday the 4th of August, the swell is running around 4ft to 5ft from the NW with a short period of 8 seconds, which is just windswell. That’s not enough to overcome the moderate to fresh breeze cross-shore wind. The water temp is about average for the time of year, no real anomaly to speak of.

Later in the first week, the swell drops away and the period gets long, up to 18 seconds, but the height is tiny – 1ft to 2ft. You’d need a longboard and a lot of patience for that.

The second week kicks off with a bit more size. On Wednesday the 12th of August, the afternoon sees a jump to 6ft from the NW, but the wind is still a strong cross-shore (28 mph), and the combined energy is 487 (moderate). The surf is still "poor." Thursday the 13th and Friday the 14th keep the swell around 5ft to 6ft, with the combined energy climbing into the 500s (moderate wave energy), but the wind is the same old story. The period is only 8 to 9 seconds, so it’s not a clean groundswell.

The standout – if you can call it that – is the afternoon of the 14th of August. The swell hits 6ft from the NW (combined energy 670, moderate) and the period is 9 seconds. It’s still only a poor surf rating, but it’s the most size we see. The cross-onshore wind at 22 mph will make it lumpy. This is a spot for intermediate surfers; the 5ft to 6ft range is manageable for them, but the wind is the killer.

The best bet honestly looks like the morning of the 17th of August. The swell is 3ft from the W (15 seconds, combined energy 473), and the wind is a light cross-onshore (6 mph). That’s the lightest wind we see in the whole run. The long period means the sets will be well-spaced and the energy is there, but it’s a small wave. It’s a beach/jetty setup, so the long period might make it a bit straight, but with that light wind, it’s the cleanest we’ll get.

If you’re a beginner, most of the surf is too small or too chopped. Nothing is over 8ft, so it’s not expert-only, but the quality is poor. The consistent cross-breeze and strong winds make this setup look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for most of the period.

The only real highlight is the 17th of August morning. It’s a small, clean, long-period groundswell with light wind. That’s your window. Don’t get your hopes up for the rest.

Rusty.

Read more