Shelley Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty. Let’s talk about Shelley Beach. The outlook for the next two and a half weeks is a bit of a mixed bag. We start off with a real nice little window this Friday, but then it gets quiet for a long stretch, before a big pulse of swell arrives on the Monday of the second week. Hold on to your leggies.

First up, Friday the 28th of August. There’s a standout morning session on the cards. We’re looking at a clean 6ft southeasterly swell with a period of 11 seconds. That’s a nice bit of groundswell energy (combined energy of 746). The wind is completely glassy, dead calm out of the SSW. This is going to be clean, lined-up surf at Shelley Beach. This is the best bet of the whole outlook.

The afternoon on Friday turns ugly. The wind swings onshore from the SSE at 12 mph, and the quality drops right out on that same fading 5ft swell.

Saturday the 29th is not worth your time. Onshore and cross-shore winds mess up a 5ft SSE swell.

Sunday the 30th, the surf dips, but there's a glimmer. A 3ft southerly swell (9-second period) meeting glassy west winds in the morning. Clean, but tiny. The wave energy is weak (271).

Monday the 31st and Tuesday the 1st of September stay small—around 3ft to 3ft—with clean conditions thanks to glassy and cross-offshore winds. You could get some fun little waves but nothing that will get the heart racing.

Then from Tuesday afternoon right through to Sunday the 6th of September, it’s a drought. The swell drops below 2ft for days on end, with a mix of weak northeasterly wind swells. The combined energy dips as low as 30. Honestly, it’s looking pretty flat for nearly a week.

Now, here’s the wild card. Mark your calendar for Monday the 7th of September. A massive 10ft southerly swell (11-second period) is predicted for the morning. That’s a huge energy reading of 3100. The wind is a moderate cross-shore from the SW. But here’s the kicker: this break can’t handle that much size. The forecast itself says the swell is predicted to be too big for this spot. This one is strictly for the experts only, if anyone is mad enough to try. It is a big, raw, dangerous ocean.

After that big pulse passes, Tuesday the 8th of September morning offers a beautiful reset. Glassy conditions on a 4ft south swell. Clean lines, perfect for a longboard or a midsize. A solid morning surf.

The rest of that second week (September 9th through 12th) fades away again into small, weak, and mostly onshore junk under 3ft. The run ends with a tiny 2ft easterly windswell on Saturday the 12th.

So, to wrap it up: the absolute pick is Friday morning the 28th of August for glassy 6ft SSE groundswell. The second-best call is the morning of Tuesday the 8th of September for that clean 4ft south swell. The big 10ft pulse on Monday the 7th is too much for this beach—leave that one alone.

Rusty.

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