Swell from the east - or from the west - which is best?

The bays had waves for days. Dredging righthanders on the sandbar on the pushing tide and sucking lefthanders when there's more water.

The point's been going off on the high tide.

Drifters come and go after sampling what the easterly groundswell has to offer. Each day seems a little better than the next. These lines have their origin in the Indian Ocean, created by unstable and unpredictable tropical cyclones that drift around, sowing destruction when they hit land. After thousands of kilometres they arrive in neat, spread-out sets, fanned by offshores.

The swell's dying now, and an onshore has chopped up the beautiful lines into white horses. Time to rest those spaghetti arms.

But not for long. In the "roaring forties", cold fronts drive out of the west, competing with each other as they lash little weather stations on islands in their path. Thousands of kilometres later they approach the sandstone point on which I stand at dawn. Now the swell is coming from the southwest. It sweeps past on the horizon, like mountain peaks and valleys as it glides into the distant offshore current. Some of it is bending away to wrap around the point before me.

I wearily turn and make my way down to where my board and wetsuit lie. Water's warm, but there's a bit of a windchill, so a springsuit is called for. I sigh as I don the suit, which is still wet from yesterday. Duty calls as I paddle towards the sunrise.

Another rough day in paradise.

Which is best - East or West?

Louis and Roger run Dawnpatrol, a surf tour operator based in East London on South Africa's south east coast. They and their support team move up and down the coast, surfing the best waves on offer between Jeffrey's Bay and the Natal South Coast.

Check out their site www.dawnpatrol.co.za.

<< Back