Bunkers Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you: looking at this 16-day window for our stretch of coast, it’s a bit of a mixed bag, and we’re going to have to sift through some real junk to find the gems.

First off, the good news: the water’s sitting around average for this time of year, so no need for extra rubber or to be sweating in a full suit. But the surf forecast? It’s a patience game. We start off with a couple of days of small, disorganized surf. The swell energy is moderate (406-469), but it’s not doing us any favors, and the wind is messing with it.

The real story is the blip that arrives on Sunday, August 2nd. A strong pulse of NW windswell rolls in, pushing the surf up to around 10ft. We’re talking 10ft to 12ft of lumpy, cross-onshore chaos. The energy reading jumps to strong (1053-1664), so there’s plenty of ocean moving, but it’s going to be a raw, powerful mess. This is strictly for experienced surfers; anyone else should be on the beach watching. That size and those winds mean it’ll be wild, not user-friendly.

That dynamic holds through Monday, August 3rd, with more heavy, wind-blown surf (energy up to 2326). Then it starts to back off and clean up a little. By Tuesday, August 4th, it’s still solid, in the 8ft range, but the winds ease. It’s still cross-onshore, so it’ll be sectiony and a bit lumpy, but the raw power is dropping.

Now, here’s where we find the one true standout of this whole period. Wednesday, August 5th, is the day to circle on the calendar. The swell drops slightly to a very respectable 7ft, but the wind finally turns offshore from the WSW. This is the moment. Bunkers (this region) , with its west exposure, is going to light up. This is a break that’s fairly consistent and exposed to the W swell, which is exactly what the guidance says it wants. The wind will be blowing slightly cross-shore, but that WSW direction is going to groom those waves. The energy is still moderate (843), but the quality will be a world away from what we’ve had. It’s not going to be perfect, but it will be the best, most rippable surf of the fortnight.

After that, things fade out again. The rest of the run has a few pulses of long-period swell, but they are small. We get some clean windows with light offshore and NNW winds, but the swell just isn’t there to back it up. The period gets long (16-18 seconds), which is great for clarity, but with wave heights of only 2ft to 3ft, it’s just not enough to surf.

The week after that, starting around Tuesday, August 12th, we see another attempt at a couple of SW groundswells. The waves are small, around 2ft to 3ft, but there's some clean potential with light winds on the mornings. These, however, are just promises a week out, so treat them with a lot of caution.

So, in short: if you’re a charger, Sunday and Monday are your playground, but it will be a battle. For everyone else, wait for the glassy windows around Wednesday, August 5th. Even then, don't expect perfection, but it’s the closest we’ll get to a proper surf. The rest is a waiting game.

-Rusty

Read more