Big Wave Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ve gotta be straight with you – the next couple of weeks are a real mixed bag, and mostly a quiet one. For the first few days, it’s pretty much a write-off with tiny waves and dodgy conditions. There is a real standout window shaping up, but you’ll need to be patient. Let’s run through it day by day.

Right now, through Monday and Tuesday (6th–7th July), it’s flat and ugly. We’re looking at 0.7ft to 0.7ft of easterly slop, blown out by a fresh 19 mph southerly. Not worth wetting a board. Wednesday (8th July) sees a tiny bump, but still only 2ft–2ft from the southeast, and with onshore wind, it’s messy. The combined energy is weak (125–211).

Thursday (9th July) finally shows some life. The swell pushes up to 4ft–4ft, also from the southeast, with a long period of 19 seconds – that’s proper groundswell energy. Combined energy jumps to 920–1149 (moderate). But the wind is still cross-onshore and choppy in the morning. By Thursday afternoon the sky clears and it’s only a light breeze, but still cross-onshore. Marginal, but at least there’s something.

Now, here’s the standout. Friday the 10th of July. This is the one to circle. Early morning at Big Wave Bay, we’ve got 5ft of southeast swell with an 18-second period (solid groundswell), and it’s glassy – zero wind. Combined energy is a strong 1624. That’s the best conditions we’ll see for a while. The swell direction is a touch off the optimum (NE is best here), but for a spot that’s fairly consistent and sheltered, this is clean, powerful, and well worth the paddle. Crowds can be around sometimes, so get in early. That 5ft is a fun size for intermediates and up – beginners might find it a bit much.

Later Friday afternoon the wind swings to the southwest at 9 mph, creating cross-shore bumps, so it’ll drop off (score 2/10). Saturday morning (11th July) is clean with cross-offshore winds from the WNW, but the swell drops fast to 2ft, then 1ft by the afternoon – not enough to hold.

From Sunday the 12th July right through to the end of the forecast (21st July), it’s a flat spell. Swell heights barely scrape 0.3ft, with combined energy often in single digits (2–6). Winds vary, but it doesn’t matter – there’s no wave power to work with. The odd glassy morning (like Thursday 17th July) is just flat calm. Not a single day in that second week offers surf worth chasing.

So to wrap it up: don’t bother this week until Friday morning. If you can, get to Big Wave Bay early on the 10th of July for the cleanest, glassy 5ft southeast groundswell of the whole outlook. After that, the taps turn off. The water temperature feels about average for this time of year, nothing wild to report. It’s been a tough stretch, but that Friday window will make it worthwhile.

Rusty.

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