Beginner-friendly conditions in surf forecast
swellnet sizes are hawaiian/australian which is headhigh(6foot face) waves are actually called 2-3foot. thats swell(out at sea) not breaking waves at protected spots. locations facing away from the swell direction will be smaller than the swell size, locations facing the direction of the swell direction, will be almost as big as the swell size unless there's any outer reefs or islands blocking the swell.
i recomend at first like first three months surfing spots facing away from the swell direction ie facing north on a se swell or facing south east on a NE swell.
You will pick it up just keep at it.
Yeah Groundswell has some good info.
But our scale as pointed out is..
1ft = 2ft faces (knee high)
2ft = 4ft faces (waist-shoulder high)
3ft = 5-6ft faces (head-high)
4ft = 8ft faces (overhead)
5ft = 10ft faces (1.5x overhead)
So if learning, look for those 1-2ft forecasts and with lighter winds. Different swells also provide more consistency than others and a lower period (seconds) windswell will be a lot more consistent and harder work than a longer-period more distant swell. This is getting bit technical but worth keeping an eye on.
Early morning will generally be best with light, morning land breezes and cleaner conditions with bumpier tricker waves into the afternoons with onshore sea breezes. Tide wise, it's bank dependant but mid-high would likely be best. Just avoid low.
If learning to surf on sunny coast, head to Happy Valley, just south of Kings Beach.
Thanks for your replies. Much appreciated.
Is there a way I can search locations by wave size? I wouldn't mind driving further to find the smaller waves.
andy-mac wrote:If learning to surf on sunny coast, head to Happy Valley, just south of Kings Beach.
Someone mentioned once that Happy Valley is usually too crowded for a beginner who doesn't know their way around yet. That's why I haven't tried there yet.
I'll check it out. Woorim too.
Patience grasshopper
Learner waves everywhere on the Sunny Coast 95% of the year
CaptainKook wrote:Thanks for your replies. Much appreciated.
Is there a way I can search locations by wave size? I wouldn't mind driving further to find the smaller waves.
i dont think theres a way to do that as most locations on swellnet are swell sizes out at sea for the entire suburb.
But you will work it out and learn by looking on google earth and finding beaches facing differing directions and reading the forecasts and reports. Also i advise getting a subscription to swellnet so you can look at surf cams at different locations and have longer range forecast views.Its worth it.
I looked at the Sunshine Coast forecast yesterday and saw winds ~ 10 knots and waves ~3-5 foot so I thought it would be a good day for a beginner like myself to practice a bit of paddling and try to catch some white water.
So I headed out to Kawana Waters (I didn't specifically pick this spot for surfing, the family had plans too) only to find it was nothing like I had expected. One wave breaking after the other and a strong current made it very hard for me to do any [serious] practice.
Now aside from the current (which you don't find in a forecast report) what could I have looked at to predict what I found? Or how do ideal beginner-friendly conditions look like in a forecast report?
Thanks