JEFFREYS BAY SURF DREAMS - J BAY HOME TO
THE PERFECT WAVE
A
thousand miles from land a storm starts brewing in the great Southern Ocean
in between the untamed continent of Africa to the north and the unexplored
wilderness of Antarctica to the south.
The wind blows across the vast expanse of water and the surface
becomes a cauldron of white horses. Eventually order appears out of the chaos. Long lines start marching across the sea to Africa.
The southern tip of Africa awaits the arrival of the swells. One place in particular is ideally positioned to ensure the swell
will form the perfect wave. Jeffreys Bay: where dreams become reality!
Known since the 1960’s as one of the best waves on the planet, not
much has changed since surfers first discovered the point that creates rides
of up to 800 m in length. The town has grown, the sand dunes have been flattened but
each year the swell still arrives and is eagerly anticipated by local
surfers who have dedicated their lives to riding the perfect wave. Surfers from all nations around the world who make the pilgrimage to
the Mecca of surfing join them at one of the many surf breaks that give
J’Bay the reputation it entirely deserves.
What can the
travelling surfer expect when he or she gets to town? When is the best time of the year to score waves?
Read on, and make your dream a reality.
Wave season in Jeffreys Bay is from June to August.
However, the swell that comes out of the South or South West starts
reaching the coast from as early as April each year and many times the
season has run until the end of September. Included
in the schedule is the Billabong Pro, a World Championship Tour event that
closes off Supertubes for 10 days in July. It is however, an awesome experience to watch the top surfers in the
world pit their skills against each other in one of the best waves of the
world.
The best way to reach the town is to fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town
and then catch a connecting flight to Port Elizabeth. Arrange for a pick up from Port Elizabeth
Transport
to J Bay
and an hour after arrival
you could be in styling accommodation and waiting in hungry anticipation for
the waves to arrive.
In winter one can still surf with a 3mm wetsuit.
Compared to prices elsewhere, if you are getting cold, you could
purchase a top quality 4mm wetsuit for around
$ 250. A hood is a bonus
on the days when the South West wind is howling and booties can prevent your
feet from being lacerated on the razor sharp rocks.
The wave size ranges from 2-3 ft up to 10 ft (Hawaiian size).
Bring your boards or order them on arrival. The more organized travellers can even order boards that will be
waiting for them on arrival! You need at least two boards in J’Bay. A 6”0’ – 6”6’ for the smaller fun days and then a
6”10 – 7”6’ for the more serious stuff.
All accessories are available in the town. So don’t worry about leashes, wax, ding repairs etc.
because all that can be taken care of in a town that genuinely caters for
surfers.
Now that you are ready to surf, what breaks are there to surf?
Here is the inside info on each surf break in town.
Surfing
J Bay - Learn
to Surf - Surf
Packages - Surf
Spots - Surf
Volunteers