Tippers Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let's take a good, hard look at what Tippers has in store for us over this sixteen-day run. Gotta be straight with you, it's not going to be a classic stretch.

Tippers is a reef break that loves a good SW swell. The water is sitting at 71°, which is a solid 5° above what’s normal for this time of year – that’s much warmer than usual, so you can leave the thick steamer at home.

For the first week, from Thursday the 9th right through to the end of Sunday the 13th, it's grim. The swell is there, sitting around 2ft to 3ft from the SSW, and it's got some decent period, but the wind is a constant problem. We've got a stubborn cross-onshore or onshore flow that's just wrecking the surface. The combined energy is moderate (between 338 and 733), but it doesn’t matter because the surf is just poor. Honestly, I wouldn’t bother paddling out.

Then we hit Monday the 14th. Tuesday morning is the first tiny light in the tunnel. We get a glassy morning with winds going totally calm. The swell drops to a tiny 2ft, and the energy is low (247). It’s small, but at least the surface would be clean. It’s the best we’ll see for a while, but it’s really just a chance to get wet on a longboard.

After that, we go through another dry spell. From Tuesday afternoon right through to Saturday morning the 18th, the waves are mostly tiny and the wind just won't play nice. The period on the 17th for Friday morning jumps to 19 seconds – a very long period groundswell – but with a wave height of just 1ft from the SW, it’s just a long-period bump on the horizon. No go. The combined energy drops to 178 (weak).

Finally, things get interesting, but it comes with a major warning. On Saturday, July 18th, the swell picks up. The combined energy jumps into the strong range (1069 in the morning, 1659 in the afternoon) as a S-SSE swell and a 4ft wave with 17-second period hits. The wind is light cross-onshore, so it'll have some texture, but there's proper size and power. This is a standout period, but with the swell hitting over 4ft and heading towards 7ft on the Sunday the 19th, it’s going to be too much for beginners. Experts only on that Sunday, and it will be big and powerful with that S angle. Crowds are possible here as it's a consistent spot.

The action fades fast. Monday the 20th sees a smaller 4ft swell, but a moderate 12 mph cross-onshore chops it right up. Then we’re back into a grey area of small, onshore wind slop for the final week of the outlook (21st to 24th), with the combined energy mostly sitting in the moderate range (348 to 663). Winds aren't clean enough to make anything worthwhile out of these small pulses.

So here’s the takeaway: The run is very lean. The absolute best bet is the glassy, clean morning on Tuesday, July 14th for small clean waves, but don't expect much size. The real power arrives on July 18th and 19th, but that’s for experienced surfers only. For everyone else, this is a stretch to just sit on the beach and enjoy that unusually warm water.

- Rusty

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