Dolphinarium Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ve got to be straight with you – it’s looking pretty bleak out there for the next 16 days. The swell just isn’t showing up with any real punch, and nothing in the forecast is going to get the heart racing. We’re stuck in a flat spell that runs right through until the end of August.

Let’s start with the first recommendation on Thursday, 13 August, at Dolphinarium. It’s an exposed beginner spot, with a tiny 0.4m swell rolling in from the WNW at a short-period 6 seconds. The wave energy is weak (13), and while the morning starts clear with a light cross-off breeze from the SW at 10 km/h, the surf conditions are still poor. The water temperature is sitting at 30°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year. On Thursday afternoon, the wind swings to the WNW at 20 km/h, going cross-on and making things choppy – not a good look with only 0.6m on offer.

Friday, 14 August, and Saturday, 15 August, follow the same tired pattern: mornings with a bit of clean glass thanks to a light cross-off, but swells barely reaching 0.7m to 0.8m and energy levels staying low (between 32 and 56). The afternoons turn choppy again as the cross-on wind picks up.

Now, Sunday, 16 August, is where things flirt with being slightly more interesting. The morning has a 1.0m WNW swell with an 8-second period, and the energy climbs to a moderate 131. The wind is a light cross-shore from the WSW at 10 km/h, so conditions are tidy with just small ripples. But the wave comment still says poor surf conditions. The afternoon sees the wind shift to cross-on, chopping it up again.

Monday, 17 August, and Tuesday, 18 August, are more of the same – 1.0m and 0.9m swells but with moderate cross-onshore wind, ruining any chance of quality.

From Wednesday, 19 August, onwards, things drop back down. Swell heights slide to 0.7m, then 0.6m, then 0.4m. Energy values hover in the low double digits. A few mornings – like Friday, 21 August, and Tuesday, 25 August – offer glassy conditions with virtually no wind, which is rare, but the swell is just too tiny to bother paddling out for.

There’s no standout session here at all. The best you could hope for is the morning of Sunday, 16 August, with that moderate energy and light wind, but with a short-period swell and cross-shore breeze, it’s not exactly screaming “get in the water”. For a beginner spot, the swell stays well below 1.5m so it’s not too big, but the lack of any decent energy or clean offshore wind makes it a write-off.

So, yeah – blank run for the area. Nothing to get worked up about. Forecasts can change, but for now, keep the board in the car and wait for better days.

Rusty.

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