Middles/Generals Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right on, let’s have a look at what Middles/Generals is offering over the next couple of weeks. I’ll be straight with you—this is a spell where you’ve got to be patient. The first week is a write-off for anything decent. Sunday, August 9th through to the end of that first week, we’ve got a relentless run of fresh cross-shore winds, mostly from the ENE, with swell around 5 ft to 5 ft but period short—7 to 8 seconds. The water’s about average for this time of year, no real anomaly to speak of. The combined energy is sitting between 440 and 566, which is moderate, but the wind is just wrecking it, leaving a lumpy cross-chop that’s no fun for anyone. The surf quality is poor, so don’t bother.

By Tuesday, August 11th afternoon, the swell takes a turn with a much longer 14-second period from the SSW, but it’s only 3 ft and the wind is still cross. The energy picks up to 552, but the conditions are still poor—that long-period groundswell is there but it’s not clean. On Wednesday, August 12th, the swell direction is straight S with a period of 18 seconds—very long period—and the height is 3 ft, with wave energy in the 886 to 892 range (moderate). But again, the fresh cross-shore wind from the ENE is making a mess. This pattern of clean-ish swell but messy wind holds through Thursday, August 13th and Friday, August 14th, with heights around 3 ft to 4 ft, periods 14 to 16 seconds, and energy up to 963. Still, the cross-shore breeze ruins it.

Then we get to the standout period: Sunday, August 16th afternoon. The wind finally shifts to offshore from the NW at a gentle 9 mph. The swell is a solid 8 ft from the ENE with a period of 13 seconds, and the combined wave energy hits 2745—that’s strong. This is excellent surf for experienced surfers. The crowd factor here is ‘often’, so be ready for company, but with offshore conditions and that size, it’ll be a proper session for those who know what they’re doing. The swell direction (ENE) is not the optimum ESE, but with that quality wind and energy, it’s still the best on offer in the whole run. The Sunday morning before it is cross-off wind, 7 ft, period 11 seconds, and energy 2519, which is decent but not as clean.

After that, Monday, August 17th drops off quickly with cross-on winds and dropping swell, and from Tuesday, August 18th onward it’s back to small, messy surf with cross-shore winds and weak energy, mostly below 341. The last week is all poor to marginal, with heights from 2 ft to 5 ft, short periods and fresh to strong cross-shore winds—not worth the paddle.

So the call: if you’ve got the skills, Sunday afternoon, August 16th is your window. Otherwise, this forecast is a long wait for a short reward.

Rusty

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