The Wedge
Jetty-amplified shorebreak at the tip of the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach. The jetty wall doubles incoming south swell back on itself into a wedge-shaped peak that breaks in shallow water close to the sand. Bodysurf and bodyboard wave.
Spot intel
Parking
Free street parking around the peninsula tip and metered city lots nearby. Walk-in only — no surfboard rental, no commercial access. Lots fill at first light on any south swell.
Crowd
Thick on south-swell days. Bodysurf and bodyboard lineup runs locally rotated. Stand-up surfboards are prohibited during posted blackball hours — May through October, 10:00 to 17:00 — which shapes the lineup composition through the summer.
Beginner-friendly?
No.
A jetty-doubled wedge breaking in shallow water onto sand has produced documented spinal and neck injuries across multiple seasons. Not a wave to enter without prior shorebreak experience.
Lineup etiquette
Shorebreak priority is per-wave to the deepest rider. The local bodysurf and bodyboard rotation runs the peak.
When it's on
South through southwest groundswell — the bigger and longer-period the better — with light offshore wind from the northeast through east. The wedge mechanics work across the tide window; size dictates the peak.
Where it breaks
- Coordinates
- 33.5917, -117.8819
- Shore faces
- SSW
- Region
- Central OC, California
Launching summer 2026.
Six-tier verdicts for every California break, calibrated to swell, period, direction, tide, and wind. One email when The Wedge ships in the app.
Other Central OC spots
- Brooks Street · Famous + beginner-friendly