Deadman's Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s lining up at Deadman’s.

We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but the second half of the 16-day window is where it gets interesting. For the first week or so, we’re looking at small, marginal surf with tricky wind, so don’t expect much. Things start to fire up around the 8th of September, with a couple of standout days that are worth circling on the calendar.

The water sits at 57°F and that’s about normal for the time of year, nothing unusual there.

Alright, let’s break it down. Right now, on Monday the 31st of August, there’s a small 3ft SSW swell (395 combined swell energy) but the wind is light cross-onshore, so it’s not going to be anything special. Tuesday the 1st and Wednesday the 2nd are poor, with small swell and cross-onshore or cross-shore breezes making for bumpy conditions. Not worth paddling out.

Thursday the 3rd of September morning has a bit more energy at 3ft from the SSW but a long period of 19 seconds – that’s a proper groundswell. The combined energy jumps to 1060, which is moderate, but the wind is light cross-shore, so there’s hope. The afternoon switches to a 5ft WNW swell with a short 11-second period, but it’s cross-onshore and messy. Still just marginal on both sessions. Friday the 4th has 3ft SSW swell with a long 18-second period, but morning wind is cross-shore and afternoon gets a fresh 19 mph cross-shore that’ll chop it up. Not the day.

Saturday and Sunday the 5th and 6th stay small, with 4ft and 3ft SSW swells, periods around 15–16 seconds, but the wind is mostly cross or cross-onshore. It’s inconsistent and the waves will be hard to line up.

Now we get to the good stuff. Monday morning the 7th of September is still small, but Monday afternoon things turn glassy – 3ft SSW swell (423 energy). That clean surface will make it rideable, even if the swell is small. Tuesday the 8th jumps to 6ft from the NW but with a short 8-second period – that’s windswell, so expect lumpy lines. Still, with light winds, it might offer something for the keen.

The first real standout is Wednesday the 9th of September. Morning has glassy conditions with 6ft NW swell (778 energy), and the afternoon hits 7ft NW (1179 energy) with glassy wind. That’s excellent surf for experienced surfers – over 7ft and glassy, the point will be clean and powerful. Thursday the 10th is even better: 7ft to 7ft NW swell (up to 1405 combined energy), glassy all day, with calm winds on Thursday afternoon. This is the absolute highlight of the window – big, clean, and perfect for the crew who can handle it. The swell direction is NW, and for this exposed reef, that’s a good fit. Crowds are often here, so expect company, but with this quality, it’s worth it.

Friday the 11th drops back to 5ft NW in the morning with light cross-onshore, but the afternoon cleans up with glassy wind and a 3ft SW groundswell (16-second period). The weekend of the 12th–13th is back to small surf (3ft to 2ft) with glassy patches, so it’s still surfable but nothing to get excited about. The 14th and 15th stay very small, with occasional glassy windows for the longboard.

Best bet? Wednesday the 9th afternoon through Thursday the 10th. That NW groundswell pushes over 7ft with glassy conditions – that’s the peak. The long period of 9–10 seconds isn’t super long, so the waves will have decent shape. If you can handle the size, that’s your window.

Rusty

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