Explore / South Africa

Jeffreys Bay.

Now

  · updated 11 hours ago
swell
2.8m
14s
wind
16 kt
southeast
tide
0.65 m
rising
N E S W
▬ swell – wind
-34.50, 24.90
Next days outlook
beta

Southwest swell at 13-15 seconds peaks Thursday under moderate to blown-out east-northeast wind, with wind-sea heavy Friday through Saturday as the swell builds to 3-4m under strong west-southwest wind. Early week holds steady at 2-3m with moderate to strong southeast wind easing, before light northeast wind Tuesday allows a glassy window. Looks like Tuesday dawn will be cleanest as the southwest swell eases to 2m under light east-northeast wind shifting to north-northwest.

Swell height

<7s
7–11s
11–13s
13–15s
15–18s
18+s

 

Wave systems

  • primary
  • secondary
  • tertiary
  • wind sea

 

Power

small
solid / average
energetic
heavy

 

Wind speed

light
moderate
strong
blown out

 

Tide

 

Weather

 

Nearby regions

About Jeffreys Bay

Jeffreys Bay sits on South Africa’s Eastern Cape, 75 km south-west of Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha), on a cape that bends west into the south Atlantic. The headline is Supertubes, a right point that runs 300 m through the heart of the bay. The cape’s sections run, top to bottom: Kitchen Windows, Magnatubes, Boneyards, Supertubes, Impossibles, Tubes, Point, and Albatross. On the rare swell that links Boneyards to the Point, the ride hits 1.1 km. J-Bay is the WSL Championship Tour’s South African stop, held at Supers in winter.

Peak runs May through September, when southern Atlantic storms send long-period south-west to south-south-west swell wrapping around the cape. June is the most consistent month, with the cleanest combination of swell and offshore mornings. The classic offshore is west-northwest to west-southwest, the dawn land breeze. By mid-afternoon the south-easter fills in and turns the open sections sideshore. Summer drops to small wind swell and onshores most days.

Water sits at 18 to 20 °C in August, 22 to 25 °C in February. A 3/2 through the surf season, a shorty in summer. The cape is in shark country: the 2015 attack on Mick Fanning during the WSL final happened in the Supertubes lineup. Spotters watch from the cliffs during the contest; off-season you’re on your own. Supers carries every visiting pro in winter; Boneyards is where the locals retreat. If Supers is twenty deep, walk south to Tubes or the Point. On a small swell, the Point still holds.

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