Broken Head Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty. Let’s have a look at what’s on the card for Broken Head. We’ve got a solid run of days coming up but it’s gonna be a bit of a mixed bag. The standout window is really the set of days starting Saturday the 20th through to the morning of Wednesday the 24th of July, but the real gem looks like it could be Tuesday the 22nd of July morning.

We kick off Thursday the 17th and Friday the 18th of July with a bit of a blustery, messy setup. Strong S/SSE winds are blowing, and although there’s some size – up to 13 ft from the SSE – the wind is cross-off and fresh, which will keep the surface clean but the whole swell energy is high (2237 on Thursday arvo). It’s powerful but not that well shaped, the period is short around 9 seconds, and the scores are low. It's a bit of a battle out there.

Moving into Saturday the 19th morning, we see a similar story: a solid 15 ft swell from the SE with a period of 10 seconds, giving huge combined energy (3623). Still, it’s cross-off wind, meaning clean faces but it’s big. For experienced surfers, there’s power, but it’s a bit of a beast. The crowd factor at Broken Head can be an issue – it’s often busy. The water temp is 69°F, which is pretty average for this time of year, no drama there.

Now, let’s talk about the pick of the week. Tuesday morning, the 22nd of July. The swell has dropped to a manageable 5 ft from the E, with a period of 9 seconds. The wind is light from the SSE at just 3 mph, making it clean. The combined swell energy is moderate (439), which suggests nice, workable waves without that raw power. It’s a point break, so it should handle that east swell nicely. Given the optimum swell direction for Broken Head is ENE, this east swell is right in the sweet spot. It’s not huge, but it’s clean and should offer some long, groomed lines. This is the morning to aim for. It might be a bit inconsistent, but the quality is there.

The rest of that week drops off. The swell fades and the direction swings around to the ENE with short period. By Thursday the 24th and Friday the 25th, it’s small and poor, with cross-on winds. Not worth a paddle.

Then we jump a week ahead. Saturday morning the 26th of July shows a brief pulse. A 6 ft swell from the SSE with a period of 11 seconds shows up, and the wind is glassy from the SW at just 3 mph. The combined energy is moderate (762). This is a promising but long-range look – keep an eye on it. The swell direction is a bit off from the optimum ENE, but the glassy conditions could make for some very clean, though possibly a little lined-up, waves at the point.

After that, it goes flat and poor for the rest of the month, until the very end. Tuesday the 29th of July arvo shows a 4 ft SSE swell with solid period but the energy is low (325). Not a highlight.

So, the one to put in the diary is Tuesday the 22nd of July morning at Broken Head. The other tip is Saturday the 26th of July morning, but that’s a week and a half out, so treat it as a hopeful maybe. The rest of it is either too windy, too big, or too small for a good paddle.

Rusty.

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