Dracula Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Righto, grab ya coffee, let’s see what’s cookin’ at Dracula. This spot is a solid, exposed reef break that needs a good west swell to work its magic, and it’s a consistent performer. We’ve got a bit of a wait on our hands though – the next week and a half is mostly a write-off.

The water temp is sitting at 71°, which is bang on average for this time of year, so nothin’ to write home about there.

The pattern for the first week into the second is pretty grim. From Thursday afternoon the 20th of August right through to the morning of Friday the 28th, we’re looking at a long stretch of poor to marginal conditions. The wind is mostly cross or cross-on, and the swell is messy, with short periods around 5 to 7 seconds. The combined energy is bouncing around between 128 and 662 (moderate), but the quality just ain’t there. You’d be paddling into lumpy, choppy lines most days. There are a couple of mornings where the wind drops to a light breeze, but the cross-shore angle and small, junky swell keep the scores low.

Then things start to look up. The real standout in this whole 16-day window lands on Saturday morning, the 29th of August. We’ve got 8 ft of NW groundswell, with an 8-second period, and the wind goes absolutely dead calm – glassy as glass. The combined energy is a massive 1023 (strong), and the call is for excellent conditions, but only for experienced surfers. That’s a heavy reef, and at that size with that much energy, beginners should stay well clear. The crowds at Dracula can show up sometimes, so get in early for that one.

Sunday morning the 30th is also a beauty – 7 ft of clean NNW swell, again with a 0-6 mph offshore east-southeast wind making it glassy. The energy is still high at 612 (moderate-to-strong), and it’s expected to be very good. Monday morning the 31st is a smaller, cleaner option with 6 ft and glassy conditions.

After that, we get a few more mornings that offer a window if you’re keen. The 1st of September Tuesday morning is small and glassy at 3 ft. Thursday morning the 3rd of September has 7 ft with a light cross-offshore NNE breeze, making for clean, very good waves. And Friday morning the 4th of September rounds it out with 6 ft and a glassy 3 mph WSW wind, expectin’ good surf.

So, to sum it up: the first week and a half is a right-off. Don’t bother. The one true standout is that Saturday morning the 29th of August – 8 ft, glassy, and pumping for the crew who can handle it. The other morning windows later in the second week are promising, but they’re further out, so keep an eye on the forecasts.

Stay salty.
Rusty

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