Banna Strand Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's get stuck into the outlook for Banna Strand.

To be straight with you, the next couple of weeks are looking pretty grim for real quality surf. The swell is coming in, but the wind is just all wrong for Banna Strand. This setup is more exposed to the west, and the wind is going to be blowing from the north and west for most of the run, which is straight onshore or cross-onshore, making a mess of it.

We kick off on Wednesday, the 22nd of July. The swell is tiny, barely 1ft with a period of 9 seconds. The wind is cross-off from the NNE, so the surface is clean, but there's just no energy to work with. The combined energy is a weak 14. This poor run continues right through the following week. The swell builds, but the wind is nearly always onshore, so even when we get chest to head-high waves, they are going to be choppy and blown out. By Saturday the 25th, the swell is building to 5ft in the morning with a 7-second period, and the wind is howling onshore from the WSW. It's a messy 325 combined energy. The next day, Sunday the 26th, the swell hits 7ft from the NW with a 9-second period, but it's a fresh cross-onshore breeze from the NW. That's going to be lumpy and tough going. The energy is strong at 777, but the quality is zero.

The pattern of onshore wind and messy surf continues all the way through to the end of July. There's a lot of swell in the water, over 6ft for a few days, but it's all blown out. On the 31st of July, we get a shift in the wind to a cross-shore from the SSW, with a solid 8ft swell from the west. The period is 10 seconds, and the energy is a very strong 1100. The forecast calls it marginal, but it's the first time the wind is not directly onshore. It's still a fresh cross-shore, so it'll be lumpy cross-chop, but it's the most interesting day of the run so far for a surfer who doesn't mind a battle.

Now, looking into the first week of August, things get a bit wild. On the 1st of August, a big swell rolls in. We're looking at 12ft from the NW with a 12-second period. That's a powerful groundswell, with a massive combined energy of 3615. That's expert territory for sure, but the wind is a moderate cross-onshore from the NW, so it's going to be a heaving, messy beast. The size and period mean it's a serious paddling effort, and the wind will make it tricky. This is strictly for the pros. After that, the swell drops back, and by the 4th of August, we are back to tiny 1ft waves. The morning of the 4th has glassy conditions from the south, but there's no swell to ride. The water temperature is about average for the time of year, nothing unusual there.

If you are looking for a standout, the best on offer is the 31st of July. The wind is finally cross-shore, and the swell from the west is a solid 8ft. It's still going to be raw and lumpy, but it's the only time in the whole forecast the wind lets up enough to make it surtable. The rest of the run is a write-off for paddle surfing. With the persistent onshore winds and the size of the swell on a beach break, this setup honestly looks more interesting for kite surfing than a standard surfboard. A long, blank run like this is pretty normal for the area when the wind doesn't play ball.

Stay tuned, forecasts can change.
Rusty.

Read more