JEFFREYS BAY SURF DREAMS
Brenton Williams
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. The prime time is crowded.
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 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
$ 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.
Enjoy just remember that you will meet many hospitable and
friendly people but respect the local surfers. They can
make your trip a memorable one and you could even make life long
friends but if you are disrespectful it is almost guaranteed you
won’t be getting many waves!
