Depressions Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here.

Look, I’ll be straight with you – this 16-day window for Depressions is a real mixed bag, and honestly, most of it is pretty ordinary. The good news is there’s a tiny window of clean, glassy conditions, but you’ve got to be patient and pick your moments. The overall pattern is small, long-period groundswell with mostly onshore or cross-onshore breezes, keeping the quality way down. The water is a wild 69°F – that’s a massive 7°F warmer than usual for this time of year, so you can leave the 5/4 at home.

We kick off on Monday, 27 July, with a 3ft SSW swell packing some serious grunt – the combined energy is a solid 734 (moderate wave energy). The period is a very long 18 seconds, so it’s proper groundswell. But the wind is light and onshore, making it messy. The beach breaks will be too straight for that long period, so you’d want a point or reef, but Depressions is a beach. Not great.

Tuesday, 28 July, is much the same – 3ft to 3ft SW/SSW swell, with a 17-second period. The energy is still there (568 to 683), but the wind stays onshore. It’s poor surf, plain and simple.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Thursday, 30 July morning is your best bet. The swell drops to 2ft from the SSE, with a period of 14 seconds – still a decent groundswell. The combined energy is 492 (moderate wave energy). But the killer detail is the wind: it’s glassy. Dead calm. That’s going to make for the cleanest, smoothest surf of the whole run. It’s the one standout. The waves will be small, but for a beginner-friendly break like Depressions, that’s perfect. Crowds are possible, so get in early.

The rest of the first week and into the second is a write-off. Friday, 31 July, through Sunday, 2 August, sees small, weak swell and onshore wind. The swell direction shifts to S and then WNW, with periods dropping to 9-13 seconds, and the energy fades to 296-466. Everything is marginal or poor.

From Monday, 3 August, onwards, it gets even smaller. Swell heights drop to 1ft to 2ft, with combined energy falling below 100 (weak wave energy) on many days. The wind is onshore or cross-onshore, and the surf is basically non-existent. There’s a brief moment on Thursday, 6 August, with a glassy morning and a 1ft 21-second period swell, but the energy is just 136 – it’s barely surfable, and the conditions are described as “very ordinary.” Not worth paddling out for.

So, to sum it up: the only real window worth paddling out for is Thursday, 30 July morning. Get there for the glass, the small clean lines, and the warm water. After that, we’re looking at a gap of at least a week of flat, poor conditions. It’s a tough run, but that one morning could be a gem.

Rusty.

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