Empty Lots Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, old Rusty here, and we gotta have a straight talk about Empty Lots. I've had a look at the numbers and, mate, it's a grim stretch ahead. For the next couple of weeks, this spot is just not playing ball.

We're looking at a run of poor surf conditions that stretches from Wednesday, July 8th, right through to at least Thursday, July 23rd. That's a solid two-week gap where you can't really recommend a paddle.

The whole pattern is a mess. A constant, fresh cross-shore wind from the ENE, blowing at 18 to 22 mph, is just chopping everything up. For the first week or so, the swell is coming from the east with a short, weak period of 7 to 8 seconds – that's windswell, not groundswell, with wave energy in the moderate range (around 400 to 637). The size hovers around 5ft to 6ft, which isn't tiny, but with that wind, it's just lumpy, crumbly junk.

There’s a brief moment around Saturday, July 11th and into the next week where the swell direction swings to the SSW and the period jumps to 16 or 18 seconds – proper long-period groundswell energy, hitting 605 and 740. But the size drops right down to around 2ft to 3ft, and that persistent cross-breeze still messes with the face. It’s too small to do much with.

You get another little flicker on Monday, July 20th, where the wind backs off a touch to a cross-off from the NE, and the conditions clean up a bit. But again, it's only 3ft of south swell – marginal stuff.

Honestly, the only times the forecast isn't just "poor" is on that Saturday afternoon and that Monday morning, and even then it's only "marginal." For a reef break, we need the wind to lay down completely, and it just doesn't. The setup looks more interesting for a kite surfer than a paddle surfer through most of this. The water temp is sitting around average for the time of year, which doesn't help the vibe any.

So, what's the best on offer? Hard to pick a standout, but if you were to hold your nose and go, that Saturday afternoon of July 11th sees the cleanest conditions with 2ft of 18-second SSW groundswell. Or, if you can wait, the morning of Monday, July 20th has that cross-off giving a clean 3ft south swell. That's it. The rest is a write-off. Empty Lots is living up to its name this fortnight.

Rusty.

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