Boneyards Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get stuck into it. The surf ahead is a bit of a mixed bag, to be honest. For the next few days, there’s some solid swell running, but the wind is going to be the main player, and not in a good way for the most part. We’re looking at a lot of strong breezes and even near-gale conditions, so while there’s size, the quality is going to be all over the shop. The standout window is looking like the Monday the 21st, a real gem compared to the rest of the run, and then again around the 28th, when things ease off but clean right up.

Right now, over the 16th and into the 17th, we’ve got a decent sized SW swell pushing in, around the 6.9ft to 9.8ft mark, but the wind is fresh to strong out of the SE. It’s mostly cross-off, which keeps it clean, but the energy is massive – we’re talking 4042 kJ/m² of combined energy on Wednesday morning, dropping to 2232 kJ/m² by the afternoon. That’s a lot of water moving. This is proper, powerful stuff, but it’s going to be challenging. The period is a healthy 13 seconds, so there’s some good push in it. It’s not a day for the faint-hearted; that size and power, it’s more for the experienced crew. Thursday the 17th sees the wind ramping up to near gale in the afternoon with a strong offshore component, which sounds good, but it’s going to be a battle to get out. The wave state is clean, but paddling into these will be a serious workout.

Through Friday the 18th and into the weekend, the swell eases a touch, still in the 4.6ft to 6.6ft range, but those strong 25-30 mph winds persist. The energy drops to around 771-1401 kJ/m², which is still moderate, but the conditions are being held back by the wind. This is where it gets frustrating – there’s surf, but it’s not giving much up. The period stays around 11-14 seconds, keeping it decent, but you’re working hard for every wave. Saturday is much the same story, with the added issue of near-gale cross-off winds and the surfline being so blown out. It’s clean in the sense of not being messy, but it’s just too windy to be enjoyable for most.

Now, here’s the good bit. Monday the 21st of September, that’s your window. The wind drops right out to a gentle offshore breeze, maybe 9 mph, and the swell is still a workable 4.6ft from the SW. The energy is down to a moderate 587 kJ/m², but with that light wind and a solid 12-second period, it’s going to be clean, lined-up, and way more user-friendly. This is the clear standout of the whole forecast. The afternoon still holds, with a light cross-off, but that morning is the pick.

After that, things taper off. Tuesday the 22nd is small, around 3.6ft, with a light cross-onshore that puts a few ripples on it. Not great. The rest of that week stays small, with a pulse of energy around the 24th – that sees the swell jump back up to 8.2ft from the SSW on Thursday afternoon, and the wind goes offshore with some light rain. That’s a promising one, but it’s a few days out, so we’ll see how it shapes up. It has moderate energy at 2260 kJ/m², so it’s got some punch.

Then we get to the 28th of September, another little clean window. The swell is down to about 3.3ft and the wind is light offshore again. It’s not big, but it’ll be clean and fun on the longer boards. The energy is weak, around 324 kJ/m², so it’s a cruisy one for sure. After that, it drops right off. The last couple of days of the month and into October, the swell just fades away. We’re talking 1.6ft to 2.6ft, with the wind swinging onshore or cross-shore, making it choppy and lumpy. There’s a brief glassy moment on the 1st of October with a long 16-second period, but it’s tiny. Not worth getting excited about.

So, there you have it. The best surf is Monday the 21st, hands down – clean, offshore, a bit of size, and moderate energy. That’s the one to circle. There’s also a shout-out to Thursday the 24th with that bigger SSW pulse, but it’s a bit further out and the conditions are still a question mark. For most of this run, the wind is the limiting factor. It’s a lot of strong breezes and howling conditions, so be picky with your sessions and don’t get too worked up about the small stuff at the end.

This is Boneyards we’re talking about, a solid reef break that’s exposed and handles a lot of swell, but with that strong SE wind, it’s going to be proper. For the beginners out there, that 9.8ft plus swell is way too much, but even the 6.6ft

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