Cowries Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's shaping up for the local banks over the next couple of weeks.

Overall, we’re in for a bit of a slow burn. There are some solid pulses of energy on the charts, but we’ll have to sit through a few quieter, wind-blown days first. The best windows of clean, solid surf are limited, so you’ll need to pick your moments.

We’ll kick things off this Friday morning, the 11th of September, at Cowries. The water temp is sitting at 64.0°F, which is about average for this time of year, so no need for a thick winter suit just yet. Early doors, we’ve got a 5.2ft south-southeast swell rolling in with a short 10-second period. The combined wave energy is solid, reading 441, but that's a bit of a mixed bag. However, the wind is magic – glassy, light, and from the east-northeast. This is the standout of the early period. You’re looking at clean, fun-sized waves on the reef and point, perfect for the weekend warm-up. The crowd factor is only "sometimes" here, so you might even get a few to yourself. That southwest-northeast alignment is not spot-on for optimum, but the quality of the conditions makes it worth the paddle.

Saturday morning the 12th sees the swell drop to 3.3ft, with a longer 11-second period, but it’s let down by a cross-onshore wind. The rest of the weekend into Monday is pretty poor – onshore winds and small, messy surf. Monday morning the 14th offers a brief respite with a glassy 3.6ft wave (249 energy) from the northeast, but the period is a short 6 seconds, so it’ll be weak and crumbly.

The real muscle shows up on Wednesday the 16th. By Wednesday morning, we have an 8.2ft south swell (10-second period) hammering the coast. The combined energy jumps to a massive 1322. This is serious power and is definitely for experienced surfers only; beginners should sit this one out. The wind is cross-offshore and clean, so the waves should hold shape, but that size and the moderate breeze will make it a challenging, heavy day. The afternoon drops to 7.2ft but is still a grunty 772 energy.

After that dramatic spike, things settle down. Thursday the 17th is another pick of the week. We’ve got a clean 4.9ft south swell (10-second period, 498 energy) with glassy conditions under clear skies. This is a much more user-friendly size with that same clean face. A proper morning session.

The following week, from the 18th onward, is pretty bleak. Cross-onshore winds and small surf dominate. There’s a notable but weird anomaly on the afternoon of Wednesday the 23rd of September – a 6.6ft south swell pops up with 683 energy, but the light cross-onshore breeze and questionable tide conditions mean it won't be clean. It’s generally a write-off until the 26th, when a 5.9ft south-southeast wind swell shows up with a short 8-second period, but it’s blown out by a moderate onshore wind.

Best Bets: Your standouts are Friday morning the 11th for the glassy, clean, fun heights, and Thursday morning the 17th for a similar setup with a little more user-friendly swell.

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