The Left Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab a coffee and listen up, this is a tough one. I’m lookin’ at The Left, and to be honest, for the next couple of weeks, it’s a bit of a heartbreaker. This spot, a classic point break, is set up for a northwest swell, and we’ve got plenty of that energy coming, but the wind gods just aren’t playing ball.

For the first five or six days, from Sunday the 19th right through to Friday the 24th, it’s a write-off. We’ve got a decent amount of swell, but it’s all tangled up with strong cross-shore and cross-onshore winds. The water is sitting at 56°, which is about what you’d expect for this time of year, so no surprises there. It’s just messy, lumpy, and not worth paddling out for. The swell energy is mostly moderate to strong, like on Tuesday the 21st afternoon we see a combined energy of 530, but with that wind, it’s all just chopped-up nonsense.

Now, Thursday the 24th of July morning gives us a little glimmer. The swell picks up to 7 ft from the WNW with a period of 9 seconds, and the wind goes cross-off, clean. The combined energy hits 616. That’s a proper, punchy point break wave, but the score is still just a 1 out of 10. It’s marginal at best. The crowds might show up for this one, and given it’s a point break, a longer period groundswell like this could really line up. But I’d wait and see.

Then we get another sneaky chance on Saturday the 25th afternoon. Swell is up to 8 ft from the WNW with a period of 11 seconds – that’s a proper long-period groundswell. Combined energy is massive at 1172, and the wind drops to a moderate cross-shore. It’s still not glassy, but it’s the best we’ve seen. Score only a 2, so don’t go telling your mates it’s going to be epic, but for a surfer who knows The Left, it could be a decent session with some power.

And again on Monday the 27th morning, another clean-looking window: 8 ft from the WNW at 10 seconds, cross-off wind, combined energy of 1131. Same story – a 2 out of 10 on the scoreboard, but real clean conditions.

The true standout? I’d have to say Friday the 24th of July morning. That clean cross-off wind and a solid 7 ft WNW swell at 9 seconds is the best combination of size and quality we see in the whole window. For a point break, that’s a recipe for some nice, long walls. But again, it’s a marginal call.

After that, it all turns to custard again. A massive 20 ft swell on Tuesday the 28th of July morning with 12-second period and a combined energy of 9213 – that’s a huge, powerful groundswell. But with a strong cross-shore wind of 25 mph, it’s just a washing machine. That’s for experts only, and even then, I’d be scratching my head. The following days are just blown out with near-gale force winds.

To be honest, for the average surfer, the first week is a write-off, and the second week is just as bad. The only tiny windows are those two mornings: Friday the 24th and Monday the 27th of July, and they’re still just marginal. If you’re desperate, you might get a wave, but don’t expect a classic.

Rusty.

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