Explore / USA / South California
The Wedge.
good for: surf
About
The Wedge sits at the south-eastern tip of the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach, where the 610 m west jetty of the harbour entrance turns ordinary south swells into one of the heaviest shore breaks in the world. Each incoming wave reflects off the rocks and stacks into the next set, building a peak that breaks metres from dry sand. Bodysurfers and bodyboarders own the lineup; surfboard days are rare and short.
Picks up swell from south through south-west, with the optimal day being SSW at 15 seconds and up. Below 12 s the reflection off the jetty is sloppy and the peak fails to form. Best on a mid, rising tide with a light north offshore. Santa Anas dial it in. Under 1 m on the buoy it is just normal shorebreak; over 5 m and the inside turns into solid water dropping onto dry sand.
The shore break dumps the lip in inches of water, and the backwash fires straight back out and collides with the next incoming set. From 1 May to 31 October between 10:00 and 17:00 the blackball flag flies, surfboards are banned, and the lineup belongs to bodysurfers and bodyboarders only. Outside those hours boards get a window, but the entry and exit through the shore-pound is the hardest part of the day. Watch a set from the sand before paddling out.
swell window offshore wind, centred on 15°
- Type
- Sand-bottom shore break at the Balboa Peninsula tip, peaks built by SSW swell reflecting off the 610 m west jetty
- Level
- Expert only
- Tide
- Mid, rising
- Crowd
- Bodysurfers and bodyboarders dominate; surfboards excluded by blackball 10:00–17:00, May–Oct
- Best swell
- S to SW swell, 15s+ period, summer to fall hurricane and Southern Hemisphere energy
When to score
% of hours scoreable per month, hindcast 2021–2026.
- jan0%
- feb0%
- mar2%
- apr4%
- may4%
- jun1%
- jul4%
- aug3%
- sep5%
- oct2%
- nov3%
- dec0%