Shelley Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a proper look at what’s on the cards for Shelley Beach.

Right now, the start of this outlook is a bit of a flat spell. For the first few days, there’s really nothing to get excited about. Tuesday the 21st gives us a bit of a pulse at 4ft from the ENE, but it’s a cross-shore breeze and the wave comment says it’s poor. We’re looking at a couple of days of small, messy stuff. Wednesday morning the 22nd cleans up a bit with an offshore wind from the WNW and 3ft swell, but the energy is weak (226). It’s surfable, but nothing to write home about.

The real story starts to build from Friday the 24th. A solid S swell pushes in, hitting 7ft by Friday morning and 7ft in the afternoon with a period of 12 seconds. That’s proper groundswell. The energy jumps to 1453, which is solid. However, the wind is cross-on from the SSE, so it’s not going to be perfect. This is a big swell for Shelley Beach, and it’s going to be a challenge for anyone not experienced.

The standout window is the morning of Saturday the 25th. The swell drops slightly to a very rideable 5ft from the S, still with a long 11-second period, and the wind is a clean cross-off from the W. The combined energy is 601 – moderate but punchy. This is the best on offer in the first week. The conditions are clean, and the swell direction is matching what Shelley Beach likes. Expect a good session.

After that, Sunday the 26th sees the swell holding around 4ft to 5ft, but the wind turns cross-shore and then cross-on, making it deteriorate. The energy drops back to the 300-500 range. Monday the 27th has a glassy morning with only 3ft of weak SSE swell, but it’s clean. Still, it’s a small one.

Then we hit a bit of a hole. From Tuesday the 29th through to the end of the month, the swell goes very small, with some glassy mornings but waves under 2ft. The energy drops to 50 or less. You’re not surfing much on those days.

Now, here’s the big one. Thursday the 30th of July. The forecast is for a massive S swell to hit, with 10ft on the morning and 13ft in the afternoon. The period is 11-12 seconds, and the combined energy is a huge 3646 in the morning, climbing to 6457 in the afternoon. The wind is glassy in the morning, then cross-shore in the afternoon. But the warning is clear: the swell is too big for this break. This is for experts only, and even then, it’s going to be a beast. The wave comment says it’s wind and tide favorable, but the swell is predicted to be too big. If you’re a seasoned charger, you’ll know what to do, but for most, it’s a day to watch.

Friday the 31st is still very big, with 10ft and clean conditions on the morning, and glassy in the afternoon. Energy is still well over 2000. The same caution applies.

From Saturday the 1st of August, the swell starts to back off, but it’s still 8ft and cross-on, so it’s messy. The rest of the first week of August is a slow decline, with small clean glassy mornings but weak energy. The standout for the second week comes on the morning of Monday the 3rd of August: 3ft from the SE, 10-second period, glassy, and the energy is 338. The wave comment says “expect good surf conditions.” It’s small but clean. That’s your best bet for that later period.

Overall, the pick of the entire 16-day window is Saturday morning the 25th of July. The 5ft S swell with that clean cross-off wind and good period will give you the best combination of size and quality. The big stuff on the 30th and 31st is for the brave only.

Rusty.

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