Vetchs Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the cards for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta say, it's a pretty grim start. We're looking at a stretch of poor conditions that hangs around for a good while. The first real glimmer of hope doesn't come until the morning of Thursday the 24th of July, but even then it's a small, weak swell with a cross-off wind. The real story is that we're in a long dry spell with no real quality surf until we get into the last few days of the month and the start of August.

The only spot that's really on the radar here is Vetchs Reef. It's a reef break and it's advanced-only, so this isn't one for the beginners anyway. It's also inconsistent and rarely breaks, so when it does fire, it's a special thing. The water temp is sitting at 73°, which is about a degree and a half warmer than normal for this time of year – nothing crazy, just a little bit of a warm blanket.

The first week is a write-off for the most part. There's a brief window on the morning of Thursday the 24th of July where we get a tiny 3ft SE swell with a 12-second period, and it's clean with a cross-off breeze. The combined energy is weak (242), so it's more of a longboard slide than anything with punch. That's the best of a bad bunch for that week, but it's still marginal.

We then hit a wall of flatness or tiny, wind-affected junk until the 26th of July. That Sunday afternoon, a 5ft ENE swell shows up, but it's a short-period 6 seconds and the wind is howling onshore at 22 mph. It's lumpy, choppy, and a mess. The energy is moderate (204), but the wind just kills it. That 6ft NE swell on the 27th of July is the same story – too much cross-onshore wind. It's a shame because the size is there, but the quality is not.

The end of July and the start of August is where things get interesting. On the morning of Saturday the 1st of August, we get a clean 3ft E swell with a 10-second period and a solid cross-off wind. The energy is moderate (388). It's still not a stand-out, but it's rideable and clean. The morning of Sunday the 2nd of August is the real standout of the whole outlook. We've got a 8ft NE swell on the menu, with a period of 8 seconds. The combined energy is a massive 1299 – that's strong wave energy. The wind is super light, almost glassy, from the ENE. This is the one to circle on the calendar. That size, however, is only for the experts. At 8ft, this is a big, powerful reef wave, and the crowd profile says it's "sometimes" busy, so expect a few others in the water for this one. With a period of 8 seconds, it's a shorter-period swell, so it'll be a bit more walled up and sectiony, but on a reef, it should still offer some good barrels for the brave.

Looking further out, the morning of Tuesday the 5th of August shows a clean 4ft E swell with a 10-second period and a light offshore wind from the west. The energy is moderate (240). It's a promising note to end the outlook on, but it's a long way off, so treat it as a hopeful sign rather than a sure thing.

So, to sum it up: the first week is a bust. The real standout is the morning of Sunday the 2nd of August – that's the one for the advanced crew. The Thursday morning of the 24th of July is the only other marginally clean option in the first week, but it's tiny. Keep your eyes on that 2nd of August session.

Rusty.

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