Kleinmond Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, it’s Rusty here, mate. Let’s have a look at what Kleinmond is offering.

To be straight with you, this run starts with a solid little Monday window then turns into a proper battle with the wind for the better part of two weeks. The first session on Monday morning, September 14, is about your best bet: clean, offshore conditions with a 4ft SW swell, and the water’s sitting at 58°F which is actually a bit colder than normal for the time of year – about a couple degrees under. That swell energy is moderate (511) and the wave comment tells the story: very good surf. The wind is off and moderate, so the lines should be clean. That’s the standout of the whole two weeks, no question.

From Monday afternoon it gets dicey. The wind bumps up and stays strong onshore or cross-onshore for days on end. Tuesday the 15th brings a 7ft WNW windswell (very short period of 6 seconds) with brutal 25 mph offshore winds – yes, offshore, but so strong it’s hard to paddle into and the wave quality is marginal. Later that same Tuesday afternoon there’s a 4ft SW swell with a much better period of 16 seconds, but the raw energy is very high (1629) and the conditions are still marginal. That’s a long-period groundswell, but with those winds it’s messy.

Then we hit a real wall from Wednesday September 16 through until Monday September 21. The swell heights peak over 7ft with strong onshore and cross-onshore winds, making for poor to marginal conditions. The energy values are high (3478 on Wednesday morning) but it’s all blown out. The swell direction and period are decent, but the wind kills it. This stretch is a write-off for a paddle surfer – if you’re into kiting, that big wind and swell combo might get you excited.

Tuesday September 22 to Thursday September 24 is much of the same: cross-onshore or onshore wind, poor conditions, dropping swell. Not worth a trip.

Now, on Friday September 25 there’s a morning window with a 8ft WNW swell (short period, windswell) and light cross-onshore winds (6 mph). Marginal rating, but if you’re a solid experienced surfer and you can find a sheltered bank, there might be something. For most of us, it’s a gamble.

Saturday September 26 morning bumps back up to 8ft SW swell with moderate cross-onshore wind and chop – that’s expert territory and messy with it.

The real light at the end of the tunnel comes on Tuesday September 29. Both morning and afternoon sessions are glassy – wind is nearly nothing from the ENE and ESE, and the swell is a clean 4ft from the SW with a 12-second period. Energy is moderate (766 and 680), and the wave comment says “very good surf conditions”. That’s your absolute standout. If you can wait that long, pencil it in. The water will still be chilly, but the lack of wind will make it worth it.

For the record, Kleinmond is a reef break, fairly consistent, exposed to SSE swell, and it can get crowded sometimes – but on that Tuesday September 29, with glassy conditions, the crowd might be thin because everyone else has given up. The offshore direction is NNW, so that Tuesday’s light easterlies will be side-offshore or cross, but with glassy conditions it won’t matter. The swell direction from the SW isn’t a perfect match to the optimum SSE, but the quality of the wave will still be good.

Overall: two real windows – Monday the 14th morning and Tuesday the 29th all day. The rest is either blown out, too strong, or too messy. That’s a long gap of rough conditions in between, but the glassy finale makes it worth waiting for.

Stay keen,
Rusty

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