Ballina North Wall Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, I’m Rusty, and I’ve been watching this stretch of coast like a hawk. Let’s get into it.

The outlook for Ballina North Wall is a real mixed bag over the next 16 days. We’re looking at a solid pulse of swell early on, but the wind is going to be a beast for most of it, making the good windows pretty narrow. The water is sitting around 69°F right now, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, so nothing to worry about there.

The first real chance to get wet is Wednesday morning, September 9th. The swell is 5.2ft from the SSE with a 9-second period, and the combined energy is moderate at 396. The wind is light from the south at 6 mph, which is a cross-shore, so it’s a bit average but not horrendous. It’s a marginal call, but the morning is the pick of the day. Conditions fall apart in the afternoon as the wind swings NE and picks up to 12 mph, making it choppy and messy.

Thursday, September 10th is a big one, but it’s not for the faint-hearted. The swell jumps to 11.5ft in the morning and 9.8ft in the afternoon, both from the SSE with a 9-second period. The combined energy is massive – 1715 in the morning and 1460 in the afternoon. That’s a lot of power. The issue is the wind. Southerly at 22 mph in the morning and SSE at 19 mph in the afternoon, both cross-shore, creates a lumpy, cross-choppy mess. The swell is too big for this break anyway, so this is strictly for the experts on a big day, and even then, the conditions are poor. The afternoon actually has a note about wind and tide being favorable, but the swell is predicted to be too big for this break. For the average punter, this is a no-go.

Friday the 11th through Saturday the 12th sees the swell drop to around 7.9ft and 5.2ft respectively, but the wind is a persistent cross-onshore from the SE at 12-16 mph, so the surf is poor and choppy the whole time. Not worth paddling out.

Sunday, September 13th is a turning point. The swell drops to 3.0ft from the SSE, but the period lengthens to 11 seconds, so it’s a cleaner groundswell. The combined energy is 310. The morning has a light cross-onshore from the SE at 6 mph, which is still a bit messy. But the afternoon is where it gets interesting – the wind goes offshore from the east at 6 mph. That’s onshore, but it’s light, so the waves should be a bit cleaner. Still, it’s small.

Monday, September 14th morning is the first real standout. The swell is only 2.3ft from the SSE with an 11-second period, combining for 161 energy. But the wind is glassy – dead calm from the south at 3 mph. That’s a major positive. The waves will be tiny and clean, perfect for a longboard or a foamie. The crowd at Ballina North Wall can be *sometimes* busy, so you might have a few others out, but it’s a mellow one. The 11-second period is a nice groundswell, but it’s small, so it’ll be fun rather than firing.

Tuesday, September 15th morning is another glassy window. The swell is 2.0ft from the SSE with an 11-second period, 140 energy. The wind is from the NE at 3 mph, glassy again. Another tiny, clean morning. The afternoon gets choppy again.

The rest of the window from Wednesday the 16th right through to Wednesday the 24th is a bleak run of poor surf conditions. The swell is tiny, often under 3ft, and the wind is either strong cross-shore or cross-onshore, making it a mess. The only exception is Monday, September 21st morning, when the wind goes offshore from the WSW at 3 mph. The swell is only 1.3ft from the SSE with a 12-second period, 102 energy. It’s clean but ridiculously small. You’d be lucky to get a wave.

The very end of the window, Thursday, September 24th morning, sees a bit of a spike. The swell is 7.2ft from the SSE with an 8-second period, 617 energy, but the wind is a cross-shore from the north at 16 mph. The swell is too big for this break, and the wind is messy. It’s a no-go for paddle surfing, but the setup with that much swell and strong cross-shore wind might look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The best on offer is the Monday, September 14th morning session. It’s small, but the glassy conditions and clean groundswell make it the most enjoyable surf in the whole 16-day window. The other standout is the Tuesday, September 15th morning, again for the glassy conditions. Both are tiny, so adjust your expectations.

There’s a long gap of poor surf from the 16th to the 23rd, with only a few brief, tiny clean windows. It’s a tough run, but the forecasts can change

Read more