Cottons Point Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s cut to it: the next couple weeks at Cottons Point are looking pretty ordinary. We’re in for a long stretch of small, mushy swell and a lot of cross-onshore breeze messing up any chance of clean waves. The first time you’d even consider paddling out is Thursday the 13th in the morning, but even then, it’s a marginal call.

Water temp is about normal for the season, so no surprises. Early in the period we’re seeing 2ft to 2ft swell with weak to moderate energy (222 to 340 in the readings). The period is around 16-18 seconds, so there’s some groundswell in the mix, but it’s too small and from the SW to do much for this break. Wind is mostly light but onshore or cross-onshore, and that’s the main culprit – it keeps the surface lumpy.

The weekend shows a slight rise on Saturday the 15th: 3ft to 4ft from the SSW, energy up to 616-720. But the wind stays cross-onshore, so it won’t be clean. Sunday morning the 16th has a bit of offshore wind, but the swell drops back to 4ft and it’s still marginal – I wouldn’t hype it up.

From the 17th through the 24th, it’s the same story: poor to marginal. Swell sits around 2ft to 3ft, energy mostly between 190 and 500, and the wind flips between light onshore and cross-onshore. There’s a short-period 9-second swell on the 22nd afternoon at 2ft, but that’s just junky. Honestly, for most of this run, it’s not worth the effort.

Now, the one standout – and it’s two weeks out, so keep that in mind – is Tuesday the 25th in the afternoon. The wind goes nearly dead, glassy conditions, and you’ll have 2ft of SW swell with a 16-second period and moderate energy (432). It’s not big, but it’ll be clean and lined up. That’s your chance. Wednesday the 26th morning has some similar promise with 3ft from the SW, but the forecast is less certain, so I’d focus on that Tuesday arvo.

Bottom line: lots of small, messy surf ahead, then one brief, clean window on August 25th. Mark it, but don’t bank on it – long-range calls can fade. Beginners can handle the bigger days around 4ft, but the wind will spoil most of them. Experts won’t see anything over 8ft in the whole run, so it’s a paddling or grovel session no matter what.

Crowds? Cottons Point can draw a few, but with a forecast this average, it’s likely to be quiet.

Rusty out.

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