Emerald Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, let’s have a look at what’s coming up for the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, mate, it’s a pretty quiet run for us. The surf is small and there’s not a lot of energy in the water. We’ve got a few mornings that might be worth a paddle, but nothing that’s going to get the heart racing. The first real chance to get wet is this Saturday morning, the 22nd of August, so we’ve got a couple of days of flat nothing to sit through before that.

The main spot we’re looking at is Emerald Beach. It’s a point break that’s fairly consistent and exposed to the right kind of swell. The water temp is sitting at 68°, which is pretty much bang on what you’d expect for this time of year – no surprises there.

Saturday morning, 22nd August: Here’s your best bet of the whole outlook. We’ve got a tiny 3ft swell from the NE, with a short period of 6 seconds. The combined energy is weak (63). The magic bit is the wind – it’s glassy, dead calm from the NNW. That means the surface will be like a mirror, so even though it’s small, it’ll be clean. It’s surfable, but very ordinary. Expect crowds here, as it’s often busy. If you’re a beginner, this is your size.

Saturday afternoon the wind swings cross-on and it gets messy. Sunday morning the 23rd sees a proper offshore from the S, but the swell drops to 2ft with a period of 8 seconds. It’s clean, but it’s tiny.

The rest of the first week and into the second is a real mixed bag of tiny swell and onshore winds. There’s a bit of a bump in energy mid-week, with the combined energy hitting 190 on Wednesday morning the 26th, but it’s from the NE with a short 6 second period and cross-on wind, so it’ll be a choppy mess.

Thursday morning the 27th is another one to look at. The swell is 4ft from the ENE at 8 seconds, with a gentle offshore breeze from the S. It’s clean, and the combined energy is moderate (163). It’s still surfable but very ordinary. Not a standout, just a decent session if you’re desperate.

Looking further out, Monday morning the 31st of August has a clean 2ft ENE swell with a gentle offshore. Tuesday morning the 1st of September is glassy again, but the swell is only 2ft. Friday morning the 4th of September has a moderate offshore wind on a 2ft ENE swell, and then Saturday morning the 5th of September has offshore winds and a 2ft E swell with rain showers.

The biggest issue is that the swell is consistently small, mostly under 3ft, and the period is short. There’s nothing that’s going to push through with any real power. The best on offer is that glassy Saturday morning, the 22nd, for a clean, small-wave session. The offshore mornings are clean, but the size is so marginal it’s hard to get excited. For a point break like Emerald, a long period groundswell would be ideal, but we’re not getting that.

For anyone looking for a bit more juice, the moderate wave energy (163) on the 27th with offshore wind is the next best thing, but it’s still a mellow day. The combined energy never gets strong, topping out at 190, so don’t expect any barrels.

Given the small size and the onshore winds that mess up the afternoons, a few of those days with the 4ft to 5ft swell and stronger onshore winds might look more interesting to the kite crew than us paddle surfers.

Rusty.

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