Gilligans Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’ve got the straight-up word on the surf for this spot for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, the opening days are a bit of a letdown, I gotta be honest. The swell is there, but the wind is just cross all day and the conditions are choppy. It’s not a total flat spell, just a frustrating one. We’re looking at a solid run of swell from the 7th of September through the 11th, but the quality is poor. It’s not until Saturday morning the 12th that things start to come together. The water temp is sitting at 85°, which is pretty much what you’d expect for this time of year.

So, let’s talk about the real gem in this whole forecast. The standout is Saturday the 12th, early morning at Gilligans. We’ve got a clean 6 ft of south-west groundswell rolling in, with a proper long period of 19 seconds – that’s a lot of energy in the water (combined swell energy of 2940). The wind is an off-shore/cross-off light breeze, meaning it’s going to be clean, and the report even says excellent conditions for experienced surfers. For this reef break, a south-west swell is spot on. It’s a very consistent break, and with a solid long-period groundswell like that, paddling out between sets will be manageable.

Now, that long period is a double-edged sword. It’s got heaps of power and shape, but at a beach break, it can make waves close out a bit too straight. Since Gilligans is a reef, this swell will handle beautifully. Crowds are listed as “sometimes,” so you can expect a few other keen surfers there for sure.

Looking further out, we’ve got another window that looks promising but less certain. The weekend of the 19th of September is something to watch. The morning of Saturday the 19th has a 6 ft south-west swell with near-calm offshore winds, and the afternoon is a full-blown glass-off – 7 ft of south-west swell with a 15-second period, glassy wind, and the water will be like a mirror. That is an absolute dream scenario for an evening session. The energy is solid at 1764. Then the 17th of September morning also shows some clean lines with a light offshore, but the swell is a touch smaller.

A word of caution: once we get into the second week, around the 20th, the swell jumps up to 8 ft and the wind turns cross-onshore and choppy. That’s a proper shralping, maybe one for the experts, but the quality drops off hard. Anything over 8 ft here with onshore wind is going to be a mess.

So, in short: the first week is a washout from the 7th to the 11th. Your absolute best bet is Saturday the 12th morning. After that, keep an eye on the 17th, and then the 19th afternoon looks like the real magic window if the forecast holds.

Stay stoked.

Rusty

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