Manly Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’m looking at the surf ahead for the Manly area. Honestly, we’ve got a bit of a slow, ordinary run to start, but there’s a punchy window late in the first week that could make things interesting for the crew willing to wait.

For the first several days, the wave energy is weak, with combined swell energy readings mostly sitting between 92 and 296, and the swell is small, under 3ft, with a short period. The wind is a mess – cross-on, cross-off, and onshore at times – so the surf is mostly poor or very ordinary. There’s a brief moment on the morning of Saturday the 10th with a 5ft swell from the ENE and a fresh cross-off wind keeping it clean, but the wave quality is still rated poor, so nothing to get excited about. We’re looking at a gap of several days with no real standout surf.

Things start to shift a bit on Tuesday afternoon, the 11th of August. The swell drops back to 3ft, but it shifts to the SSW with a longer 11-second period, giving the wave a bit more shape. The combined energy jumps to 257, and the cross-off wind from the west keeps the surface clean. Still, it’s only “surfable but very ordinary.” Not the headline.

The real standout – and I mean the only one worth pointing a board at – is Thursday the 13th of August. Manly wakes up to a solid 8ft swell from the SSW with a 10-second period, and the combined energy rockets to 1227. That is strong, powerful water. The wind is a fresh offshore from the southwest, 30 km/h, keeping the surface clean. This is expert territory – over 8ft is big, and it’s going to be a handful. The swell direction (SSW) is not the optimum (SE) for this sheltered point, but the size and clean conditions make it the best on offer. Thursday afternoon gets even bigger, hitting 10ft from the S with 11-second period and 1927 energy, but still with a cross-off wind. Friday the 14th holds at 7ft in the morning, still clean, but the energy drops.

After that, the swell fades quickly through the weekend and into the next week, with combined energy dropping below 400 and swell heights back under 5ft. The winds become more cross-shore or onshore, and the surf is mostly poor. There’s a brief moment on Friday the 21st with glassy conditions in the morning, but only 3ft from the ENE, so it’s small and weak.

One thing to note: the water temperature is about average for the time of year here, so no major surprises on that front.

Best Bet: Thursday the 13th of August, early morning. Big, clean, offshore. For experts only. Bring your big-wave board.

Rusty

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