Fishermans Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight – it’s a tough run ahead. We’re talking about Fishermans Reef, and there’s barely a whisper of rideable swell in the whole 16-day window. It’s a real quiet spell, and for a spot that’s very sheltered and rarely breaks, this kind of blank run actually isn’t that unusual. Fair warning from the start: don’t get your hopes up.

Right now, Friday the 28th of August, we’ve got a messy NNE wind and a tiny 3ft bump coming from the NNE with a short period of 5 seconds. The combined swell energy is weak at 44, and it's lumpy cross-onshore chop. Not worth wetting a wetsuit. The water temp sits at 57°, which is about 1° cooler than average for this time of year.

Come Saturday the 29th, the morning gets a little bigger at 4ft from the north with a period of 7 seconds, and combined energy jumps to moderate at 120. But it’s still a messy cross-onshore wind, so it’s blown out. Then the afternoon brings the only real spike in the whole run – a 6ft swell from the NNE with an 8-second period. The combined energy hits strong at 710, and the wind switches to a clean cross-offshore from the SSE. That’s the best the whole forecast gets. This is the standout. It won’t be huge, but for this reef, it’s the most energy we see, and the clean conditions make it the session to aim for. Keep in mind the optimum swell direction here is NE, and this is coming from the NNE, so it’s close.

From Sunday the 30th onward, it’s a slow fade. Swell drops below 3ft, and while we get some fresh offshore winds from the WSW on Sunday morning, Monday on the 31st, Tuesday on the 1st of September, and Wednesday the 2nd, the swell is tiny – 2ft and smaller. That early September period into the 3rd and 4th drops to a pathetic 1ft or less. Combined energy sinks into the teens and twenties. The wind stays clean or offshore, but with no swell to work with, it’s just flat, clean water.

There’s a brief flurry on the 11th and 12th of September with a long-period 13-second groundswell from the NE, around 1ft. The combined energy is only around 35, and the wind is fresh offshore. A long period like that on a reef setup could offer a clean but tiny wave. It’s promising in theory, but way too small to be a real session. For that Saturday the 12th, the wind does drop to a light offshore, which is glassy potential, but still next to no swell.

So, overall: one half-decent chance on Saturday the 29th of August afternoon. Otherwise, leave the board in the car. With the swell so small and the winds mostly clean or offshore, if you’re feeling optimistic about a kite, those clean, windy days with no surf might be your thing.

Rusty.

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