Gold Beach/South Park/Hunter Creek Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here. Let's talk about what's shaping up for our patch.

Right, look, it's a slow start, and I mean real slow. We've got a bit of a flat spell on our hands, but don't lose hope just yet. The first real chance to get wet hits us on Monday, 24 August. It's not going to be anything epic, but after a few quiet days it'll feel like a blessing.

Monday, 24 August is where you want to point the car. Head down to Gold Beach/South Park/Hunter Creek. We're looking at a tiny 2ft to 2ft swell rolling in from the SW with a really nice long period of 18 seconds – that's proper groundswell energy. More importantly, the wind goes glassy. Absolutely dead calm. The water temp is sitting at 55°F, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year, so you'll want the thick rubber. The surf will be clean as a whistle because of that glassy wind. The combined wave energy is moderate, reading around 277-339. It's not big, but the quality will be there for a fun little session.

The good news is that Wednesday, 26 August looks very similar. Again, glassy conditions in the morning and afternoon, with those clean 2ft to 2ft SW lines coming through at 16 seconds. Another good day for a longboard or a fish. Combined energy sits around 231-267, so still moderate but fun.

There's a bit of a lull in between with wind ruining things, but then we get a potential standout later on. Look, I'm keeping an eye on Tuesday, 1 September. The morning looks a bit messy, but the afternoon at Gold Beach/South Park/Hunter Creek could deliver. The wind swings to the west and goes glassy again, with the swell bumping up to a clean 3ft from the west at a short 9 seconds. The combined energy jumps up to 343, which is solid moderate. For a day that's over a week away, it's a promising little window.

After that, we get another run of choppy conditions and cross-shore winds. The swell stays small, mostly 2ft to 3ft, but the wind just doesn't play ball for paddle surfing.

The most interesting event on the entire 16-day chart is Sunday, 6 September. This is the one that gets the heart rate up. The morning shows a 6ft WNW swell with a 12-second period, and the afternoon sees it jump to a solid 8ft from the NW. The combined energy is staggering – 1195 in the morning and a massive 3206 in the afternoon. That is very strong wave energy. However, and it's a big however, the wind is blowing a moderate cross-shore at 9-16 mph, which will chop it up. At 8ft, this is expert-only territory. It's a good week and a half away, so keep it on the radar, but for most of us, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing right now. The quality won't be there for a clean paddle session.

For the rest of the window, it's mostly a waiting game. The blanks are broken by those few glassy mornings, but don't expect any fireworks unless you're an expert eyeing off that first weekend of September.

Stay keen, the ocean will come good.

Rusty.

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