Cape Paterson Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s look at what’s coming up for Cape Paterson over the next couple of weeks. To be honest, the first week’s a bit of a struggle with a lot of onshore wind and poor quality. The water temp is about 57°, pretty average for this time of year.

We start Sunday the 26th with a cross-onshore W wind at 16 mph, putting a chop on a 6 ft WSW swell. The combined energy is 836 – moderate – but the surf is poor, so don’t bother. Sunday arvo stays messy. Monday the 27th looks cleaner with a cross-offshore NNW wind, but the swell drops to 4 ft and it’s only marginal. Tuesday the 28th has clean wind but the NNW gusts up to 28 mph, which is too strong for the 5 ft swell. That arvo brings rain and a strong cross-shore mess with combined energy hitting 1249, but still poor.

Wednesday the 29th sees a big pulse from the SW – 13 ft at 16 seconds – but the wind is howling onshore from the SW at 25 mph, making it total washout. The combined energy is a huge 8013, but that’s for kite foilers, not surfers. That stiff onshore wind lingers into early Thursday with lumpy 6 ft swell.

Thursday the 30th is still poor. But Friday the 31st morning gives us a little window: NNW wind drops to just 3 mph, cross-offshore, and a clean 4 ft SW swell at 12 seconds. Combined energy is 584, and good surf conditions are on. That’s a nice dawn patrol. That arvo the wind swings W and goes light onshore, so the morning is the pick.

Saturday the 1st of August keeps the clean vibes: N wind 6 mph, cross-offshore, and a 3 ft SW swell with 12-second period. Combined energy is 445, good surf expected. Small but tidy.

Now, the real standout: Sunday the 2nd of August. Clear skies, a light NNE wind at 6 mph, cross-offshore, and a solid 6 ft SW swell with a very long 18-second period. Combined energy is 1799, good surf conditions. This is a groundswell, and at a beach-and-reef set-up like Cape Paterson, those long-period swells can run a bit straight on the sandbanks, but the energy and clean wind should open it up. This is the pick of the run. The afternoon stays clean but smaller with a 17-second period – still worth it.

Monday the 3rd brings a fresh cross-shore chop from the NW at 22 mph, lumping up the 5 ft swell. Tuesday the 4th sees a big jump to 10 ft swell from the WSW, but the wind is messy and cross-shore from the WNW at 19 mph – marginal at best.

Wednesday the 5th of August is another cracker for experienced surfers: glassy conditions with an NNW breeze barely ticking over at 3 mph, and a 7 ft SW swell at 16 seconds. Combined energy is 2589, and it’s rated excellent for the crew who can handle it. That’s solid groundswell energy and perfect wind – a proper session for the advanced crew.

Thursday the 6th goes lumpy again, and the following week from the 7th into the 10th has some solid swell pulses but often with onshore or cross-onshore wind. Friday the 7th morning has a 10 ft WSW swell with cross-onshore wind, combined energy 3866 – big and messy. Saturday the 8th morning cleans up nicely: N wind 6 mph, cross-offshore, 5 ft WSW swell at 13 seconds, combined energy 2206, excellent for experienced surfers.

The second week fades. Sunday the 9th and Monday the 10th have clean cross-offshore winds but smaller swell around 4-5 ft, with combined energy in the hundreds to low thousands. Marginal but could offer a cleaner, smaller wave for a mellow session.

The two real standouts are Sunday the 2nd of August morning and Wednesday the 5th of August morning. The 2nd has clean, light wind and a long-period groundswell that should line up nicely for the reef and banks. The 5th is glassy and solid – one for the experienced crew only. If you can’t make those, Friday the 31st morning and Saturday the 1st of August offer small but clean options. The rest of the time, the wind and chop really limit the quality.

This is Rusty, signing off.

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