Lyall Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Grab your board, cause there’s a bit of a wait before Lyall Bay shows us its best face. The next week is a mixed bag, with plenty of size but often messy conditions. Then we get a run of cleaner, more manageable waves that are well worth circling on the calendar.

Right off the bat, Friday afternoon sees a small 2ft SSW swell with a long 17-second period. The wind is howling offshore and the water's a touch warmer than usual, but it's just not showing much push. The energy is weak at 255, and to be honest, it’s not worth getting excited about.

Saturday rolls in with a bigger pulse but the wind swings onshore. Morning has 6ft of SSW swell with moderate energy (1504), but that cross-onshore breeze chops it up. By the afternoon, it’s pumping 10ft from the south with strong energy (3049), but that’s too much juice for Lyall Bay—it’s going to be a washing machine. Leave this one to the experts, and even then, be picky.

Sunday morning is the first real glimmer of hope. We get clean, glassy conditions with a 6ft S swell rolling in at 12 seconds. The energy is solid (1080) and the offshore wind is barely there. This is your window for a proper surf. The afternoon gets a bit cross-onshore again, dropping to 6ft, so make the most of the morning.

Monday keeps things going. Morning has a solid 6ft S swell with gentle offshore winds—clean and very good. The afternoon is a little smaller at 5ft but still clean. This is a good run of consistent, surfable waves.

Tuesday, the swell drops off, and the wind picks up. 3ft and then 3ft with strong offshore breezes. It’s clean but small and weak. Wednesday it’s all over—near gale-force winds and tiny leftovers, not worth a paddle.

There’s a couple of days with nothing on offer before a new pulse arrives. Thursday the 17th sees a short-period 7ft S swell with poor conditions. Friday the 18th is small and ordinary.

The standout window looks like Sunday the 13th and Monday the 14th. Light winds, clean faces, and a proper 6-6ft south groundswell with decent periods. This is the pick of the fortnight. You get head-high sets, clean lines, and the crowd factor is always possible at Lyall Bay, so get in early.

The following week gets trickier. There’s a massive 11-13ft pulse on Sunday the 20th, but that’s just too big and blown out by strong winds—kite-surf territory, not a paddle-surf day. The energy readings for those are huge (1475 and 2574), but it’s not for us.

Look towards the end of the month. Friday morning the 25th looks promising again with a clean 5ft S swell and gentle offshore winds, good energy (547). After that, the wind gets strong again, but the swell holds. It’s a longer-range call, so treat it as promising, not certain.

So, to sum it up: don’t waste your time this weekend unless you’re an expert. Wait for Sunday and Monday for the best clean, mid-sized surf. The end of the week after that has some potential, but we’ll see. Keep an eye on the wind.

Rusty.

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