The Jetty Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s be straight—this outlook is a lean run for The Jetty, a sandbar break that works best on a south-easterly swell. The whole 16-day window is thin, with only a handful of sessions worth even paddling out for, and nothing that’ll get your heart racing. We’ve got a gap at the start where it’s all poor surf until Wednesday the 29th of July, and after that it’s mostly small and ordinary right through to the 9th of August.

Right now through to Tuesday the 28th of July, the swell is tiny—2 ft to 4 ft—and coming from the east or south-southeast with short, weak periods of 4 to 7 seconds. The wind’s blowing onshore or cross-onshore, creating chop and mess. Combined swell energy is pathetic, hovering around 48 to 84 (weak). There’s nothing going on worth your time.

Wednesday the 29th of July is the first real sniff of surf. The morning sees a 4 ft south-southeast swell with a 7-second period, light westerly cross-offshore wind, and clean conditions. Combined swell energy bumps to 139 (moderate). It’s surfable but ordinary—nothing special. By the afternoon, the wind swings offshore from the northwest, the wave height drops to 3 ft, and it stays clean. Still, it’s pretty average.

Thursday the 30th of July follows a similar pattern: 2 ft to 2 ft south-southeast groundswell with a 9-second period, moderate offshore wind in the morning, clean in the afternoon. Energy sits at 92 and 106 (moderate). You’ll get a few fun ones, but it’s not a standout.

Then we hit a long dry spell. From Friday the 31st of July through to the 9th of August, the swell stays below 3 ft, mostly around 1 ft to 3 ft. The wind flips around, and there are a couple more clean windows—like the morning of the 3rd of August with a 3 ft south-southeast swell, 8 seconds, light north wind, clean and 112 combined energy (moderate)—and the afternoon of the 6th of August with glassy conditions and 3 ft swell, 7 seconds, 58 energy (weak). But none of it breaks into proper surf.

The best on offer? Honestly, pick your poison between the morning of Wednesday the 29th of July or the morning of Monday the 3rd of August. Both have clean conditions, light winds, and a bit of swell. The 29th has a touch more size and energy, but the 3rd might be slightly cleaner. It’s a low bar.

The Jetty is a beginner-friendly sandbar and fairly consistent, but with nothing over 4 ft and most days under 3 ft, it’s a stretch to call it good. Crowds are only sometimes a problem here, but on these days, nobody’s rushing out.

That’s the story, mate. Keep an eye on the forecasts—it tends not to stay this quiet for long, but right now we’re in a slump.

Rusty.

Read more