Emerald Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright mates, Rusty here. Let’s break down what’s going on at Emerald Beach over the next couple of weeks. It’s mostly a tale of small surf and tricky winds, but there are a couple of clean windows if you time it right.

The overall vibe is quiet. There’s some small swell, but the wind is the main character here, and it’s not always friendly. The real golden moment is a tiny, glassy morning window.

The Standout: Saturday Morning, August 22nd

On Saturday the 22nd, early doors, we’ve got a dead calm with zero wind from the ESE. It’s as glassy as it gets. The swell is tiny at only 3 ft from the NE, with weak combined energy (76). The water temp is 68°F, right where it should be for the time of year, so no cold water shock. It’ll be small and slow, but it’ll be clean as a button. Get out there at dawn before the day wakes up and the breeze picks up.

Saturday Afternoon (22nd) through to Wednesday Morning (27th)

Saturday afternoon is a bit messy with a light cross-on breeze. Then Sunday the 23rd brings a change. Sunday morning has a moderate offshore wind from the SSW at 12 mph. Swell is a slight 2 ft from the ENE (period 8 seconds), but with that offshore wind it cleans right up. Sunday afternoon stays clean with a S wind at 9 mph. Monday the 24th starts with another beautiful, glassy flat calm (3 ft, 97 energy). Perfect for a cruiser, but still small.

Tuesday the 25th sees the swell start to push up – Tuesday afternoon hits 5 ft from the NE, with a moderate combined energy (338). But the wind is a fresh onshore breeze from the NNE at 19 mph, making it choppy and tough. Wednesday the 26th has a light cross-shore in the morning, which is ridable but nothing to write home about.

The Real Green Flag: Thursday Morning, August 27th

This is your second real highlight. On Thursday morning the 27th, we’ve got a gentle offshore from the south at 9 mph, with a solid 4 ft swell from the ENE (period 8 seconds). The combined energy is a moderate 207, and the report is stoked: “expect good surf conditions.” This will mean clean, lined-up, head-high-ish waves at Emerald. A top-tier morning. The afternoon goes onshore again, so it’s a dawn patrol special.

The Back Half (late August to early September)

After Thursday the 27th, the quality goes downhill fast. From Friday the 28th through the end of the month and into September, the winds are mostly onshore or cross-on, and the swell stays small, barely hitting 3 ft. There are brief offshore windows around the 30th and 31st of August and the 1st of September, but the wind is a strong 22-25 mph from the SSW. That’s too strong to comfortably paddle into, even if the water is clean. A definite pass for a paddle surfer.

Heading into the first week of September, it’s the same story: small, weak swell with poor wind. The 2nd of September has a morning with a period of 11 seconds from the E – a bit of groundswell energy – but the swell is only 3 ft and the wind is a light cross-off. It’s clean but tiny. After that, it’s back to onshore slop.

To put it simply: you’ve got two clean windows – the glassy dawn on Saturday the 22nd, and the offshore morning on Thursday the 27th. The rest is mostly a game of waiting out the wind for tiny scraps. Pick your moment, and don’t miss that Thursday morning.

Rusty.

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