Supertubes (J-Bay)
Edit SpotAbout
Ruler edged corduroy lines perfectly wrapping around a point. Will leave you stoked! Respect the locals. Thanks. Enjoy !!!
Atmosphere:
Magic J-Bay ? When the sun rises, casting its liquid golden hue over the sea and lighting up the misty purple Elandsberg mountains in the distance, schools of dolphins stop by on their feeding route.
Additional Info:
A strong storm from the southwest, or the unusual southeast, is needed to push waves into the Bay. Such storms are almost always accompanied by offshore southwest winds. The harder the wind blows, the bigger it gets.
SuperTubes: a powerful wall, drawing larger swell energy from the upper reefs and funneling it for around 200 yards, letting the skilled surfer dictate the terms of a ride without ever seeming weak or unchallenging.The wave is best in the 4 – 8 ft category.
J-Bay is a very long pointbreak (about 1-1.5km), on flat-lying slate (not volcanic rock as most guides say), that can be divided into several sections:
Boneyards: basically the very top of the point. Breaks very hard and fast way out the back on bigger swells, and hopefully you link up with Supers. It's a heavier wave than Supers.
Supertubes: the main event at J-Bay, sand over rock. Long-walled, fast, perfect, hollow waves, with barrels possible all the way along, but more often towards the end. The wave tends to 'slide' along the point, dissipating the whitewash for easier duck dives and focusing the energy on the breaking wave. The wall seems to keep coming up at you faster than you expect. The tubes usually need to be ridden high in the pocket. Sets can break wide on bigger days. When it's really big, the wave has been known to link up all the way to the town beach, through several sections, for a ride of about 1-1.3km+, but on a decent 6 foot+ day the waves are usually about 400m+ long. Tales of 4 or 5 minute rides are exagerated, to get all the way to the end of the long point (which is very rare) is about a 2 minute+ ride, and it needs to be 10 foot+. 'Supers' is definitely one of the best points in the world.
Salad Bowls and Tubes: there are several sections between the main wave at 'Supertubes' and 'the Point' further down, which work during different tides and swells. Tubes is a barrel that works on medium size swells about 600m+ down from the top of Supertubes.
The Point: fat, slow moving wave, that wraps into a little cove at the end of the long point, for about 150m. Holds some size, but doesn't have the barrels or the class of Supers.
Albatross: inconsistent final section on sand over reef, way down in front of the beach and across from 'the Point'. Needs bigger swells, and apparently gets good.
Location
Loading...Access
Go to Jeffrey's Bay and ask for directions Supertubes. Billabong Pro held there in July.
Walk | Instant access (<5 min) |
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Public access | Yes |
4x4 required | Unknown |
Boat required | Unknown |
Wave Characteristics
Type | Point break |
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Direction | Right |
Bottom | Sandy with rock |
Power | Hollow, Fast, Fun |
Frequency | Very consistent (150+ days/year) |
Normal length | Long (150 to 300m) |
Good day length | Very Long (300 to 500m) |
Ideal Conditions
Wind direction | North, NorthWest, SouthWest, NorthEast |
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Swell direction | North, SouthWest, NorthEast |
Swell size | 3ft-5ft - 10ft+ |
Tide | Mid tide |
Tide movement | Rising tide |
Crowd
Week | Crowded |
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Weekend | Ultra crowded |
Dangers
Rips / undertow, Rocks, Sharks
Videos
None
Nearby spots
0.21 miles away
Direction: | Right |
Bottom: | Sandy with rock |
Frequency: | Regular (100 days/year) |
0.22 miles away
Direction: | Right and left |
Bottom: | Reef (coral, sharp rocks etc.) |
Frequency: | Very consistent (150+ days/year) |
0.48 miles away
Direction: | Right |
Bottom: | Reef (coral, sharp rocks etc.) with sand |
Frequency: | Very consistent (150+ days/year) |