Aileen's Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, we’re looking at Aileen’s over the next 16 days, and I gotta be straight with you: it’s a frustrating run for a spot that can fire. There’s surf, sure, but the conditions keep letting it down.

We start with a few decent windows. Monday morning the 24th of August has a clean 3ft swell out of the WNW, with a gentle offshore breeze from the east. The water’s sitting at 63°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year. The combined energy is moderate at 162, and the 11-second period gives the waves a bit of shape. It’s surfable, but it’s not setting the world on fire. Monday afternoon gets a little better with a 3ft swell from the west and clean conditions thanks to a light cross-offshore breeze. The energy bumps up to 245, and you can get some fun ones.

Tuesday morning the 25th of August is similar—3ft from the west, offshore wind again, energy at 181. It’s that same “ordinary but surfable” vibe. Then it goes downhill for a long stretch.

From Tuesday afternoon right through to the end of August and into early September, it’s mostly poor. Onshore winds, lumpy seas, choppy conditions. There’s a brief moment on Wednesday morning the 26th with glassy conditions and a 2ft swell from the west, but the period is a short 7 seconds and energy is weak at 41—barely a ripple. From late August into the first days of September, the swell starts to build, but so does the wind. Thursday the 3rd of September has a solid 8ft to 8ft swell from the WSW with strong energy (920 on the morning, 1,088 in the afternoon), but the wind is howling out of the south and southwest, blowing it out completely.

The standout period is far out, and I mean far. On Sunday the 6th of September into Monday the 7th, we see the biggest swell of the whole run. Sunday afternoon is just massive—20ft from the WSW with a 13-second period and an absurd combined energy of 11,992. Monday morning the 7th drops to 13ft from the west, but the period extends to a very long 17 seconds, with energy at 9,157. This is serious, heavy groundswell, and at Aileen’s, a reef break, that long period will unload. The problem? Both days are hammered by strong cross-onshore winds from the northwest. It’s going to be raw, dangerous, and blown out. That’s strictly for expert chargers only—beginners shouldn’t even think about it, and even advanced surfers need to be on their A-game. The only saving grace is that the spot is exposed and the direction (WSW for Sunday, W for Monday) is ideal for Aileen’s, which favors a WSW optimum. But the wind just ruins the party.

If you were hoping for a clean session, your best bet is actually right at the start. Monday the 24th of August, particularly the afternoon, with that clean 3ft west swell and light cross-off breeze. It’s not big, but it’s the cleanest we get in the entire forecast.

There are no other breaks in this report to recommend. It’s a long 16-day stretch with a lot of wind and a lot of frustration. For kite surfers, the strong, consistent wind and building swell towards the end of the period might look interesting, but for a paddle surfer? It’s lean.

Stay patient, mate. The swell will come back with cleaner winds eventually.

Rusty

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