Coffs Harbour-North Wall Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s coming up at Coffs Harbour-North Wall (Australia).

Look, we’ve got a bit of a slow start and a long patch of pretty ordinary conditions before anything really gets going. The first sniff of anything worthwhile isn’t until Monday morning, 31 August, and even then it’s not a standout – but it’s the best we’ve got for a while. The water temp is sitting at about 68°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

Monday morning, 31 August – this is the pick of the first week. The North Wall will see a 4ft swell from the south, with a period of 9 seconds. The wind’s coming from the south at 9 mph, which is a cross-offshore breeze, so it’ll be clean. Wave energy is moderate at 510, so there’s some push behind it. It’s fairly consistent here, but with crowds marked as “often”, you can expect some company. This is the one session to aim for.

From Monday afternoon through to the end of the first week and into the second, it gets pretty flat and messy. There’s a long gap with nothing worth paddling out for – mostly tiny waves under 2ft, poor wind, and low energy readings dropping as low as 40. You’ll see a few glassy mornings on Wednesday 2 September and Friday 4 September, but the swell’s only 2ft or 1ft, so it’s more of a cruise than a proper surf.

Thursday morning, 10 September – a slight lift, but it’s still marginal. A 3ft swell from the east-northeast with a period of 7 seconds, glassy wind at 3 mph, and clean conditions. The energy is 120, so weak. It’s surfable but very ordinary.

Friday morning, 11 September – now we’re talking. This is the real standout of the entire outlook. A 5ft swell from the south-southeast, period of 7 seconds, with a light south wind at 6 mph blowing cross-offshore. It’ll be clean, and the combined energy is 288 – moderate but the best reading in the whole run. This is the session to circle on your calendar. The North Wall handles a south swell well, and it’s exposed. It’s not too big, so intermediate surfers can have a crack too, but with crowds likely, get there early.

After that, things fade again into the second week with small, onshore slop. No other standouts.

So to wrap it up: if you’re chasing waves, Monday morning 31 August is your first real option, but the Friday morning 11 September is the clear winner. The rest of the 16-day window is mostly flat or poor.

Rusty.

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