Altona Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for the local stretch.

First up, we’ve got Altona Pier. Honestly, looking at the whole 16-day run, it’s a pretty grim picture for paddle surfing. The water temp is sitting around 57°, which is about average for the time of year, so nothing weird there.

The first bit of any real interest doesn't kick off until Sunday the 13th of September. We get a tiny 1ft swell out of the SSW, but with a long period of 16 seconds. The wind is a moderate offshore from the NNE, so it’ll be clean, but the combined energy is a weak 48. It’s surfable but very ordinary.

Things then go completely flat and messy for several days. Monday the 14th through Thursday the 17th are all poor conditions with tiny or no swell and onshore or cross-onshore winds. We see a bit of a spike on Tuesday the 15th afternoon, with a 4ft SSW swell, but the wind is a fresh cross-onshore and the wave energy jumps to a moderate 421, so it’s just choppy and lumpy. Not worth paddling out.

The whole second half of September is a tough slog. The swell stays small, mostly under 2ft, and while there are moments of clean conditions with offshore winds, the wave heights are just too weak for a proper session. The standout oddity hits on Sunday the 27th of September in the afternoon. The forecast shows a 4ft S swell with a very long 18-second period, and the combined energy rockets to a strong 741. The wind is only a gentle cross-onshore, and the forecast says the swell is predicted to be too big for this break. For Altona Pier, 4ft is actually manageable, but that long-period groundswell will make it break really straight. It’s a reef setup here, so it might have some shape, but the report says it’s too big for the spot, so take that with a pinch of salt. The week before that, on the 21st and 22nd, we get some glassy mornings with small 2ft and 2ft SSW swells, which would be the cleanest, smallest days of the whole outlook.

Overall, there’s no real highlight here. The best you can hope for is a tiny, clean wave on the 21st and 22nd of September, or that weird, oversized, long-period swell on the 27th if you’re a real local who knows the sandbanks. Otherwise, it’s a lot of flat, choppy, or just plain poor conditions. For the crowds, Altona Pier can get busy sometimes, but with surf this small, it’ll be quiet.

Rusty out.

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