Little Austi and Main Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Yo, Rusty here. Let’s talk about Little Austi and Main Beach. This is a beach and reef setup, exposed to the swell, and the optimum direction is from the east-northeast. It’s fairly consistent, but don’t get too excited just yet – we’re looking at a pretty flat and messy start to the run.

The first surf worth mentioning is on Friday the 21st of August. We’ve got small 3ft swell from the NE, with a short period of 6 seconds. It’s surfable, but conditions are very ordinary. The wave energy is weak (59), so it’s pretty gutless. The morning has a light offshore wind though, so it’ll be clean. By the afternoon, the wind goes glassy, which is nice for the tiny waves.

Then we hit a real dry spell. From Saturday the 22nd right through to Tuesday the 25th, it’s all poor surf conditions. The swell drops to almost nothing – 1ft – and the energy is barely registering (single digits to low 40s). Even when a bit of energy pops up on the 25th (101 in the morning, 147 in the afternoon), the waves are still just ordinary. Not worth paddling out for.

Wednesday the 26th of August brings a slight bump. The morning has 4ft swell from the NE, with period creeping up to 8 seconds and energy hitting 196. It’s clean with a light cross-offshore wind, but again, the forecast calls it “very ordinary.” It’s not bad, but it’s not good.

The rest of the week – Thursday 27th through Sunday the 30th – is a write-off. Strong southerly winds kick in, and the swell gets messy. On the 29th, we see 5ft swell but with 25 mph cross-onshore winds. It’s a washing machine. By Sunday the 30th, the swell hits 7ft to 8ft, but it’s onshore and the energy is strong (569 to 897), but it’s blown out. For a beach and reef setup, that’s more of a kite-surfing scene than paddle surfing.

Monday the 31st of August is still marginal. There’s 5ft to 6ft swell from the ENE with a 9-second period, but light cross-onshore winds keep things bumpy.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Tuesday the 1st of September is the standout. The morning is glassy – dead calm – with a clean 5ft swell from the ENE and a 9-second period. Wave energy is solid at 366. The forecast says “expect good surf conditions” and I can feel it. This is the best on offer. It’s not huge, but with glassy conditions and that ENE swell lining up with the optimum direction, the reef should hold some nice lines. Crowds are possible here, but it’s a mid-week morning, so you might score it quiet.

Wednesday the 2nd of September morning is also good. Another glassy start, 4ft swell from the E with a 9-second period and energy at 262. Clean conditions again. After that, the swell fades and the wind starts to mess things up, but that window of Tuesday and Wednesday mornings is the pick of the whole 16-day run.

After that, into the second week, the swell drops off significantly. Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th of September have small 3ft to 3ft swell from the E with longer periods of 10 to 11 seconds. The energy is moderate (111 to 236). The winds are light and offshore or glassy, so the waves will be clean but tiny. You might get a fun little longboard ripple on the reef. By Saturday the 5th of September, same story – tiny 3ft from the E with offshore winds.

Overall, don’t waste your time on the first week. It’s flat, then blown out. The real window is Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at the start of September. Glassy, clean, and with a bit of ENE groundswell. Get out there if you can.

Rusty.

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