Broken Head Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, grab a coffee and settle in. This is a proper look at the 16-day forecast for Broken Head, and I’ll be honest with you, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. There’s a real quiet patch on the cards for a stretch, but a serious pulse of energy shows up mid-period that could be the standout, as long as you’re comfortable with some size and wind.

We start off with a bit of a whimper, to be honest. The surf is there on Friday the 11th, but it’s messy. We’ve got a 7.9ft south-south-east swell at 8 seconds, but the wind is a cross-off from the south-south-east at 9 mph and there’s light rain in the air. The water’s sitting at 68.9°F, which is about average for this time of year, and the energy is solid at 822. It’s got some push, but the short period and the wind make it pretty lumpy. It’s not a day for the faint-hearted. That afternoon, the wind swings more to the south-east at 12 mph and the swell drops slightly to 6.9ft. It’s rated as being in the balance, but I’d be looking elsewhere if I was you.

The weekend stays pretty uninspiring. Saturday the 12th sees the swell back off to 5.2ft and the wind staying cross from the south-east at 6 mph, which leaves a bit of a chop on the face. The wave energy drops to 415, feeling weak. Sunday the 13th is smaller still, with a 3ft south-south-east swell but the period stretches out to 11 seconds. The wind is light cross from the south-east at 6 mph. It’s clean-ish but tiny. Not a whole lot of push behind it.

Monday the 14th is the definition of a flat spell. The morning has a tiny 3ft groundswell at 11 seconds, but the wind is glassy from the east at 3 mph. It’s clean, but there’s almost nothing to ride. The energy reads just 199. That afternoon the wind turns onshore from the north-east, and it’s game over. From Tuesday the 15th through to Wednesday the 23rd, the forecast is a real write-off. We’re looking at a stretch of about eight days here where it’s really going to be a mission to find anything rideable. Swells drop to under 3.3ft, periods get all over the shop, some genuinely long period energy at 18 seconds on the 19th but with no size and a howling onshore wind. It’s just a whole lot of nothing. For a spot like Broken Head, a blank run like this can happen, but it tends not to last forever.

Hold on, because Wednesday the 16th is where things get interesting. The morning is still junk, but that afternoon the whole game changes. A big south-south-east swell pushes in, reading 9.8ft at 8 seconds, and the energy cranks right up to a strong 1215. The wind also picks up to a fresh 22 mph but it’s from the south-south-east, which is a clean cross-off at this spot. It’s going to be wild, powerful and most likely lined up. Heads up though, with the swell over 8.2ft and that short period, this is a day for the experienced crew only. If you’re a beginner, give this one a wide berth. The conditions are raw, but there’s power there for those who can handle it.

That pulse hangs around for a few days. Thursday the 17th keeps the south-south-east swell going at 6.9ft, but the wind drops to a moderate 12 mph, still from the south-south-east, so it stays cross-off and clean. It’s still solid and powerful. Friday the 18th is another good shout. The morning has a clean 4.3ft south-south-east swell at 10 seconds, with a light south-south-east cross-off breeze at 6 mph. The energy is a moderate 345, but conditions look really good. This could be the pick of the bunch if you want decent waves without the absolute mayhem of the 16th. The afternoon is a bit of a let-down with the wind going cross-on from the east-north-east.

From Saturday the 19th, it’s back to the poorhouse. The swell drops out and the wind is on it from the north, making it choppy and messy. The energy levels just bleed away. We get a tiny 1.6ft bump on the 19th morning with a very long 18-second period, but there’s no size and a cross-on breeze, so it’s a non-starter. The rest of that week and into the weekend of the 22nd and 23rd is a story of tiny, weak, onshore slop. The energy numbers are in the double digits some days, which is as weak as it gets.

The very end of the window, around the 25th and 26th of September, shows a bit more swell, up to 5.9ft and 6.6ft, but it’s coming from the north-north-east with

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