Big Ben Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's cookin' for Big Ben over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with ya. The first few days are a bit of a struggle. We're looking at small, weak energy for a stretch. The swell is tiny, around 2ft from the east, and the combined energy is middling to weak (361 to 315). The wind is mostly cross or cross-off, which keeps things clean enough, but the waves are just too marginal for a proper session. Friday afternoon on the 28th of August shows the best of a lean period – still only 3ft from the east with a 12-second period, and the light WSW wind (12 mph) should give us a clean little wave. It’s a beginner-friendly spot, so it’s okay for a longboard or a foily but nothing to write home about.

Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th are a write-off. The swell drops even more and the wind gets messy. Sunday morning (30th of August) does have a moment of glassy conditions with maybe 2ft of east swell – combined energy is low (137) – but it's a very ordinary wave for the effort.

Then we hit a rough patch. From Sunday afternoon (30th of August) right through to early September, the conditions are pretty average. The wind is constantly cross or onshore, and even though the swell starts to push above 3ft on the 1st of September, it’s coming from the south, which isn't the optimum direction for Big Ben. The south-east facing breaks will see this, but it'll be lumpy and choppy. Not worth paddling out.

The only real standout in this entire 16-day run arrives on Thursday the 10th and Friday the 11th of September. This is where it gets interesting. We see a long-period south-southwest groundswell arriving, with a period of 14 seconds and swell heights around 5ft to 6ft. The combined energy is strong (around 1385 to 1477). Now, the cautious part: it's coming from the SSW, not the optimum SE direction, so this exposure will see a good amount of energy but the shape might be a bit straighter on this beach/jetty setup. The wind is forecast to be cross-shore, not perfect but workable. The 11th of September looks the best – morning session with a light NE breeze (12 mph) should be clean enough for a go. With the swell over 5ft, it's getting a bit much for absolute beginners, but it's the best offer of the whole outlook.

The rest of the second week fades back into small, poor-quality, onshore slop. Big Ben is a tough spot to rely on in this pattern; it tends to be inconsistent, and this run proves it. You gotta wait for that one window around the 10th and 11th.

This is Rusty, signing off.

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