Ammonias Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here.

Look, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it – this 16-day run for Ammonias is a real tough one. We’re starting on Saturday the 12th of September and, honestly, there’s just nothing to get excited about for a long, long stretch. The entire first week is a write-off. We’re looking at weak, short-period slop with a persistent cross-onshore wind that’s got the surface all chopped up. The water’s sitting at 80°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

The first few days, Saturday the 12th through Tuesday the 15th, are all “poor surf conditions.” Swell heights barely tickle 3 ft, and the combined energy is weak to moderate, like 255 to 528. It’s just a messy, cross-onshore breeze making a mess of things. You’d be wasting your time.

We finally see a bit of a bump on Wednesday the 16th, with the swell sneaking up to 3 ft and a period of 18 seconds. The combined energy jumps up to 739, which is in the moderate range. But the wind is still cross-shore and a bit breezy at 25 km/h, so it’s only called “marginal.” It’s a tease, not a thrill.

Thursday the 17th gets a bit bigger, with swell pushing 6 ft, but the period drops to a pitiful 7-8 seconds. That’s just short-period, wind-affected junk, and the cross-shore wind is still 25 km/h. The energy hits 957, but with that windy, short-period mess, it’s not surfable. Definitely not for beginners at that size, but the quality is so poor that even experts would be frustrated. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The pattern just repeats. Friday the 18th sees 3 ft swell with a decent 16-17 second period, and combined energy over 1000 – strong to very strong. But the wind is still cross-shore and moderate, keeping it marginal at best. There’s a bit of a window that afternoon where it’s truly cross-shore, but it’s still messy.

From Saturday the 19th right through to the end on Sunday the 27th, it’s a blur of “poor” and “marginal” calls. The swell direction swings around, mostly from the SSW or ENE, and the wind never cleans up. The wave energy bounces between 500 and 900, but the conditions just don't come together. The swell starts to push over 5 ft again from the 21st to the 23rd, but it’s short-period stuff again, with a 7-10 second range, and the wind is always cross-onshore or cross.

There isn’t a single standout session in this entire forecast. The only day that even hinted at being okay was Wednesday the 16th afternoon, but even that was barely surfable. For Ammonias, this is a long, dry, frustrating stretch. Sometimes it’s just like this – the conditions don’t line up, and you’ve got to sit it out.

Later, Rusty.

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