Shelley Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s shaping up for Shelley Beach over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, we’ve got a real bright spot to kick things off. Monday morning, the 7th of September, is looking like the standout of the entire forecast. The water is sitting at 66°, which is about 0.5° warmer than average for this time of year, so pretty normal. But the real story is the conditions. We’ve got a clean 5ft swell rolling in from the SSE with an 8-second period, and the wind is absolutely dead calm – glassy. The combined swell energy is a moderate 261, and it’s going to be clean right from the start. Shelley Beach is exposed to the SE swell direction, and this one is right in the sweet spot. For a Monday morning, it doesn’t get much better than this. Get out there early.

Now, after that, the week takes a turn. From Monday afternoon all the way through the weekend, it’s a write-off. The wind swings around, and we get a mix of cross-on and onshore breezes turning the ocean into a choppy mess. On Tuesday the 8th, the swell actually jumps up to 8ft, but it’s coupled with a strong cross-on wind from the SSE, and the combined energy hits 1052, which is pretty strong. That’s not for the faint-hearted, and the quality is just poor. This stretch of junk continues right through the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th. The swell stays big, often over 7ft, but the wind never gives us a break. It’s a long stretch of no-go.

We get a brief, half-hearted window on the morning of Sunday the 13th – a small 3ft SSE swell with a light cross-offshore breeze, so it’s clean. But it’s tiny, and it doesn’t last. The 14th and 15th are even smaller.

Then, finally, we get a second chance. On the morning of Friday the 18th of September, the wind finally turns offshore out of the NNW. We’ve got a 4ft SSE swell with a 9-second period, and it’s clean. The combined energy is a modest 283, but that offshore wind makes all the difference. The conditions are good. This carries through into the afternoon with a 4ft swell and the same offshore wind. It’s not the size of the Monday morning, but it’s surfable and clean.

The 19th and 20th are messy again, but we get a final glassy moment on the morning of Sunday the 20th of September. The swell is small at 3ft from the S, 10-second period, and the wind is dead calm again. The energy is 203, so it’s a weak one, but it’ll be clean. Worth a paddle if you’re desperate.

Late in the forecast, on Tuesday the 22nd of September, the swell jumps up to 8ft in the morning, then a massive 10ft in the afternoon. The combined energy on that afternoon swell hits 1271, which is very strong. But the wind is cross-on from the ENE, and the forecast is clear: at 10ft, this swell is predicted to be too big for this break. The surf quality is marginal, and it’s going to be a challenge. That’s for experts only, and even then, it’s not ideal.

So, to wrap it up: Monday the 7th is your best bet – glassy, clean, and a solid 5ft. The second best is Friday the 18th with offshore winds. The rest of the window is either too small, too windy, or too big. That’s the long and short of it.

Rusty.

Read more