ADs/Doubles Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, I'm Rusty. Let's have a look at what ADs/Doubles has in store for us over the next couple of weeks.

It's a pretty grim run for this spot, to be honest. The water temperature is sitting right on 81°, which is pretty much dead average for this time of year, so at least you won't be cold while you're staring at poor surf. The real issue is that the wind is completely cooked. We've got a persistent cross-shore, often a fresh to strong breeze, that just won't let up, and overall wave energy fluctuates but the quality is shot.

Let's start from Friday, the 4th of September. The combined swell energy is at a strong 1559, but the swell is 5 ft from the S with a 12-second period, which is a decent groundswell. The problem is that 25 mph cross-shore wind from the ENE is making a complete mess of it. The comment says it all: "poor surf conditions". By the afternoon, the energy jumps to 1841, the swell shifts to the E at 5 ft with a 14-second period, but still with that 22 mph cross-shore wind, it's just lumpy cross-chop. Not worth paddling out.

Saturday the 5th sees the swell bump up to 8 ft on the morning from the ENE, with a 13-second period, and the combined energy is a whopping 2484 – that's very strong energy. But the wind is still a fresh cross-shore at 19 mph, and the report says "marginal surf forecast". It's the same story in the afternoon: 8 ft swell, 2773 energy, but the wind is still cross-shore. At this size, it's getting heavy for beginners, but it's not clean for anyone.

Sunday the 6th, we get a slight dip in the morning with 7 ft from the ENE, but the wind goes cross-onshore and it's lumpy. The afternoon actually has the best score of the entire run, a 2 out of 10, with a 6 ft swell from the SSW and a 14-second period. The combined energy hits 3561, which is very strong. The wind drops to a moderate 12 mph but it's still cross-onshore, and there's a risk of thunderstorms. It's the best of a bad lot, but that's not saying much.

Monday the 7th is more of the same: 8 ft swell, cross-onshore wind, and the wind actually goes straight onshore in the afternoon. Through the rest of the first week and into the second, it's a relentless parade of cross-shore winds, lumpy conditions, and poor surf. The swell does drop to below 3 ft on the 9th, with a long 14-second period from the SSW, but the wind is still cross-shore.

From the 10th of September right through to the 19th, the swell period often drops to 8 seconds or less, which is weak, short-period windswell, and the combined energy falls into the moderate range of 440 to 968. The wind stays a fresh cross-shore, or cross-onshore, on almost every session. There's a brief moment on the 16th and 17th where the swell is 3 ft from the SSW with a very long period of 17-18 seconds, which would normally be exciting, but the wind is a strong or fresh cross-shore, killing any chance of clean waves.

Honestly, there's no standout here. The best option, if you're desperate, is the afternoon of Sunday the 6th of September. It's the only session that scored a 2, with very strong energy (3561) and a 6 ft SSW swell that lines up nicely with the optimum direction for ADs/Doubles (ESE – the SSW is from the opposite side, but the guidance says the optimum is ESE, so this is a bit of a gamble). The wind is still cross-onshore, and it's a beach-and-reef setup, so with the strong cross-onshore breeze, it's honestly looking more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. For the rest of the 16 days, it's a long, poor stretch. You can probably save your energy and wait for a better forecast.

Rusty.

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