Kelso (Happy Wanderers) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright mates, Rusty here. Gotta be straight with you – the outlook for Kelso (Happy Wanderers) is a bit of a slow burn for the first few days. We start off on Monday the 6th and Tuesday the 7th with tiny, weak dribbles and onshore winds, so don’t even bother paddling out. Those days are write-offs.

Things start to look more interesting from Thursday the 9th. Thursday morning brings a clean, 3 ft south-southwest swell with a nice 15-second period, and a steady cross-offshore breeze from the south. The wave energy is decent, sitting at 540 (moderate). It’s not huge, but the conditions are clean and will shape up nicely for an intermediate. Thursday afternoon is even better – the swell bumps up to 6 ft from the same direction, still very clean with light winds, and the energy jumps to 954 (strong). This is looking like a solid, fun session.

Now, Friday the 10th is the real standout of the whole period. Friday morning is absolutely pumping for the experienced crew. Swell is a solid 8 ft from the south-southwest, period at a very long 15 seconds, and the wind is light and cross-offshore – glassy clean. The combined wave energy is massive: 2671 (very strong). This is a powerful, long-period groundswell, so at a point break like this, it’s going to groom into some proper, long walls. This is top-tier stuff, but at 8 ft it’s strictly for the experts. Friday afternoon holds the same size but gets a touch of cross-on wind, so the morning window is the one to chase.

Saturday the 11th and Sunday the 12th see a drop in quality as winds turn onshore or cross-shore. The swell hangs around the 5 ft to 6 ft range, but it’s messy. Not recommended. There are some marginal windows on Sunday morning with a clean cross-off, but the period drops to 12 seconds, so it’ll be a bit weak and fat.

Heading into the second week, we get another pulse. Monday the 13th is a tricky one. The morning has a big 8 ft swell from the south-southwest with a 14-second period, and the wave energy is enormous (4099 – extremely strong). But the wind is a light cross-on, so it’s going to have a bit of texture on the face. Experienced surfers who can handle size might find some diamonds in the rough. Tuesday the 14th is a no-go – 10 ft swell but battered by choppy cross-onshore winds. After that, from Wednesday the 15th onwards, the size drops and the winds stay poor or strong, and the whole setup looks more like a kiting show than a surf session. A few clean days pop up on Saturday the 18th, but the swell is only 4 ft-4 ft, so it’s a mushy, low-energy clean-up.

For the best chance of a wave this week, you’re looking at Thursday the 9th afternoon and Friday the 10th morning. The Friday morning session is the absolute standout.

Rusty.

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