Big Ben Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab your board. Rusty here, and I’ve been staring at the charts for our local patch – Big Ben. It’s gonna be a mixed bag, but there’s a couple of windows you’ll want to mark on the calendar.

Right now, the water is sitting at a balmy 82°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year. Nice. But don’t get too excited yet, because for the next week or so, it’s mostly going to be a struggle. We’ve got a fair bit of energy pulsing in – that combined swell energy is swinging around a moderate 1670, but the winds are messy and the sizes are all over the place.

Tuesday (August 25th) and Wednesday (26th) are write-offs. The swell is confused, the wind is cross or howling, and the conditions are just ugly. Thursday (27th) looks flat with a tiny 2ft easterly swell and a risk of thunderstorms. Not worth the paddle.

The first real glimmer of hope comes Friday morning, August 28th. It’s not going to be big – just a small 3ft easterly groundswell with a nice 12-second period – but the wind is forecast to go *dead glass*. That light south-easterly energy (combined energy of 373) won’t give you much push, but if you’ve got a log, those clean, glassy peelers will be all yours. Saturday (29th) and Sunday (30th) mornings are also worth a look for the same reason: clean conditions and small, rideable waves. The crowds will show up *sometimes* here, but on a small clean morning, it’s usually mellow.

We then hit a dead zone from late Sunday through most of the first week of September. The wind is rubbish, onshore, and the surf quality drops right off.

The Real Standout – Save Your Energy for This.

Alright, here’s the one you wait for. Tuesday morning, September 1st. The swell kicks back up to a solid 4ft from the south, with a 12-second period and light offshore breeze (NNE). The combined swell energy jumps to a solid 602. The forecast says “very good surf conditions,” and I’m backing that. This is the pick of the next two weeks. It’s not huge, but it’s clean, punchy, and well-shaped for a beach/jetty setup. Get in the water.

Now, after that, it gets interesting but not for the faint-hearted. Wednesday, September 2nd, a big SSE swell ramps up to 12ft, but the wind turns onshore (ESE) in the morning. That’s heavy, powerful surf, and the combined energy hits a strong 2535. For the experts only – this is beyond beginner territory and pushing even for most intermediates. Thursday, September 3rd, it gets even bigger. We’re looking at a massive 25ft southerly swell with a combined energy of 14919 – that’s a big, dangerous ocean. The wind is cross-onshore and the conditions will be lumpy and chaotic. Unless you’re a seasoned charger on a gun, you want no part of this. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for those couple of days.

From Friday the 4th onwards, the swell drops back down, but the wind stays stubbornly onshore, leaving us with poor, choppy conditions through to Wednesday the 9th. It’s a long stretch of nothing, but after that huge pulse, the ocean needs a rest.

So, bottom line: Tuesday morning, September 1st is your target. Small but perfect. For the brave, keep an eye on the 2nd if you’re a true expert. For everyone else, the small, glassy mornings at the end of August are a nice warm-up.

Stay salty,
Rusty.

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