Dreamtime Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what Dreamtime has in store for us over the next couple of weeks.

First off, I gotta be straight with you – the surf outlook for Dreamtime is a long, frustrating wait. We’ve got a solid 11 days of weak, messy, or just plain tiny waves ahead before things finally get interesting. The wait starts now.

For the first week and a half, from Wednesday the 19th through to about Saturday the 29th, it’s a story of small swell and mostly poor conditions. The combined swell energy is low, usually sitting between 66 and 267, which is just weak sauce. We see a few fleeting moments, like Friday morning the 21st – the wind goes glassy and the swell is a tiny 0.9m from the ENE but with a short period of only 7 seconds, so the energy just isn’t there (combined energy of just 129). It’s surfable waves but very ordinary. Then again on Monday morning the 24th, more glassy conditions but with swell dropping to 0.7m from the E – really just a dribbler. On Wednesday morning the 26th we finally see a clean, *offshore* wind from the WNW, but the swell remains a weak 0.9m. It’s clean, sure, but not worth getting excited about.

The weekend of the 28th and 29th offers cleaner conditions with offshore winds, but the swell stays under a metre. It’s the kind of session you take if you’re desperate for a paddle, not a highlight.

Now, hold onto your board, because the real story begins on Sunday the 30th of August. The forecast shows a big jump in swell size and a massive spike in combined swell energy (1845) – that’s very strong. We’re looking at a 2.5m swell from the S, with a period of 9 seconds. The wind is a clean cross-offshore from the SW and conditions described as “wind and tide favorable.” Here’s the catch, and it’s a big one: at 2.5m, this swell is predicted to be too big for Dreamtime. This is a spot for experts only on this day. The direction from the S is also not the optimum SE direction, so the quality might be a bit lumpy and closed out.

Moving into Monday the 31st of August, the pattern continues big. Another 2.5m swell from the SSE, combined energy of 1315, with a period of 10 seconds. Again, the forecast says wind and tide are favorable, but it’s too big for this break. It’s fresh cross-shore winds, which will create a messy, lumpy chop. Not for the faint of heart.

After that pulse, it cleans up but drops off quickly into the first days of September, with moderate cross-onshore winds and choppy conditions all the way to the 3rd.

So, where does that leave us? Honestly, the standout – and the only real reason to check the charts closely – is the Sunday the 30th of August. It’s a big, powerful swell in clean wind, but you need to be an expert to handle it, and expect the wave quality to be tricky due to the swell direction. It’s not a beginner session. If you’re an experienced surfer with a step-up board and you like a challenge, mark that date. For the rest of the window? It’s pretty bleak, unless you’re into long, flat paddles or just want to sit and watch the ocean.

- Rusty

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