Kelso (Happy Wanderers) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for Kelso (Happy Wanderers). This point break is a fairly consistent setup, exposed to swell from the south, and it loves that optimum direction. The water temp is sitting about average for this time of year.

We kick things off this Friday, the 7th of August, with a bit of life in the water. The morning is your best shot early on. We’ve got a clean 3ft SSW swell, with a period of 13 seconds pushing through. That’s a nice, long-period groundswell – it’ll wrap around that point beautifully and give you some proper shape. The wind is a light cross-offshore breeze, making for clean, lined-up waves. The combined energy is moderate at 381. It’s not massive, but it’s quality. The afternoon though, the wind swings cross-on and it gets a bit messy – morning is the call here.

Saturday and Sunday, the 8th and 9th, are a write-off. The swell drops, but the real killer is the wind. It’s blowing hard cross-on, up to 15 to 22 mph, just chopping everything up. The swell energy is moderate, but it’s all windswell junk. Not worth paddling out.

Now, Monday the 10th is a different beast, but only for the brave. A big 10ft S swell hits, but the period is short at 9 seconds. That’s a lot of raw power, and the combined energy is strong at 1402. The wind is a strong cross-off, so it will be clean, but at 10ft with that short period, it’s going to be a washing machine. This is expert territory only, and even then, it’s going to be a battle. Tuesday the 11th is similar, still around 8ft to 8ft with a short period, and the energy is still strong. It’s big and clean, but it’s not fun surfing for most of us. Probably more of a kitesurfing day if the wind holds.

We get a real reprieve on Wednesday the 12th. The swell drops to a very manageable 4ft from the SSW, and the period stretches back out to 12 seconds. The combined energy is moderate at 981, but the wind is a gentle cross-off. This is where you want to be. The conditions are clean, the waves will have shape, and the crowd profile says it can be busy, so get in early. This is the standout of the first week.

The rest of that week into the weekend, from Thursday the 13th through to Monday the 17th, is a bit of a mixed bag. The swell shifts more east and the wind is onshore or cross-on, keeping things messy. The size varies from 5ft to 8ft, but the quality isn’t there. The combined energy for the bigger days (like Saturday the 15th at 1868) is very strong, but it’s all onshore junk. Not a good bet.

We then hit a quiet spell from around Tuesday the 18th, with the swell dropping out. It’s not until Wednesday the 19th that we see a little glimmer – a clean 4ft E swell with a gentle cross-off, but it’s small and marginal.

Then, from Thursday the 20th onwards, the swell just tanks. We’re looking at tiny 0.6ft to 1ft waves. There’s nothing to recommend through to Saturday the 22nd, which ends the period with a big, messy 8ft S swell with a decent period but terrible cross-on wind.

Overall, the clear standout is Wednesday morning, the 12th of August. That’s the session you don’t want to miss. The Friday morning the 7th is a solid second choice for some cleaner, smaller waves.

Stay frothing,
Rusty

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