Blacks Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s talk about Blacks Reef.

We’re looking at a solid run of south swell, but it’s not all going to be friendly. There’s a bit of a rough start to kick things off, but the week has a couple of real moments that’ll make you paddle out.

Tuesday morning kicks in with a chunky 10ft south swell, but the wind is cross-onshore out of the southwest at 15 mph, and the water is getting messy. The combined wave energy is strong at 2822, but the surf quality is poor – a real fight. It improves slightly by the afternoon as the wind drops to a light breeze, but it’s still a cross-onshore situation, and the water has those small ripples. Expectations are low.

Now, Wednesday 2nd September is where we get a proper window. The morning already looks cleaner with a 8ft south swell, a light NNW breeze giving us clean conditions, and energy pumping at 2936. That’s excellent for experienced surfers. But the real standout is Wednesday afternoon: the wind goes glassy, a light 3 mph from the NE, with a 8ft south swell and an incredible 17-second period. That’s a very long period groundswell, packing a punch at 4137 combined energy. This is the best on offer – for experts only, but the waves will be powerful, well-shaped, and clean as a whistle. Blacks Reef is exposed to the south, and that’s exactly what we need. The water temperature is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual.

Thursday 3rd September still has clean 5ft surf in the morning, but the energy drops and the wind picks up a bit. By the afternoon it fades to smaller 4ft waves with light cross-shore ripples. After that, we hit a dry spell. From Friday the 4th through Monday the 7th, the swell drops right out – tiny waves under 3ft, and mostly poor conditions. Tuesday the 8th sees a pulse of 10ft south swell return, but it’s cross-on and cross-shore winds again, so it’s marginal at best. Wednesday the 9th is small but clean, around 4ft to 4ft.

The middle of the second week gets ugly. Thursday the 10th and Friday the 11th have onshore gales and small, messy surf. Forget it. Then Saturday 12th September morning goes glassy, with a long 18-second swell, but it’s only 2ft. There’s some energy there (300) but not enough to get excited about.

The last real highlight is Tuesday 15th September. Morning is glassy with a 5ft south swell and energy at 730. That’s looking very good. But Tuesday afternoon is the standout of the second week: offshore wind from the NE, 7ft south swell, 11-second period, and solid energy at 1123. Clean and powerful – excellent for experienced surfers. Wednesday 16th holds some 4ft waves with gentle offshore wind, a decent way to finish.

Crowds? Blacks Reef is marked as “often” crowded, so when the quality hits, expect company. The break is very consistent, so it doesn’t stay flat for long.

Rusty

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