Cape St Francis Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, let’s have a look at what’s coming up for Cape St Francis.

Honestly, mate, the next couple of weeks are looking pretty grim. We’ve got a long stretch of tiny, weak waves and poor conditions to get through. The water temperature is sitting at a cool 62°, which is a bit colder than normal for the time of year, so you’ll want a decent steamer.

We start off on Sunday, the 30th of August, and it’s a bit of a non-event. We’ve got some small, slow 2ft easterly swell rolling in, with a period around 11 seconds. It’s clean enough, with a light cross-off breeze, but the wave energy is weak (141). The word from the water is ‘poor surf conditions’, so honestly, it’s not worth paddling out. Monday the 31st is similar – that same tiny 2ft east swell, still clean in the morning, but still just small and ordinary. This flat spell drags on right through Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We’re looking at swell dropping to 1ft or even 1ft, with the wave energy falling right off. There’s just nothing doing for the first six days here.

Then we get a pulse of energy around Friday the 4th of September. The swell jumps up to 8ft from the southeast early on, and the wave energy gets a moderate kick (968). But – there’s a catch. The wind is a raw onshore easterly at 22 mph, which is gonna absolutely trash any chance of a decent wave. It’s a classic case of ‘looks good on paper, feels terrible in the water.’ Saturday the 5th is still onshore and messy.

Sunday the 6th of September sees the swell hanging in at around 6ft to 8ft from the east, but again, that onshore wind is just ruining it. The period drops to a short 6 to 7 seconds, which means weak, lumpy, and basically unrideable. Another one for the kite surfers, not for a paddle board.

Monday the 7th is a bit of a tease. We get a solid 6ft east swell early, with a clean cross-off west wind blowing at 31 mph – that’s a near gale. The wave energy is strong (587), but you’d be mad to be out in that wind. The afternoon cleans up a touch with a 5ft swell and a fresh cross-off breeze, but it’s still only rated as marginal.

From there it’s back into the doldrums. Tuesday the 8th to Thursday the 10th of September offers a few mornings with light cross-off winds and tiny 2ft waves. They’re ‘surfable’ in the loosest sense, but it’s really just small, weak, and ordinary. Friday the 11th and the weekend after that are again plagued by onshore winds or just no swell to speak of.

To be brutally honest, there isn’t a single standout session in this whole 16-day window. If I had to pick the best of a bad bunch, I’d point to the Monday afternoon of the 7th of September. You’ve got a clean 5ft swell from the east, a consistent break, and a cross-off breeze that’ll tidy it up. But it’s still just marginal, and those strong winds will be a factor. It’s the best you’re getting, but it’s a far cry from good.

Keep an eye on things, though. In this part of the world, the surf can turn on a dime.

Rusty.

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