Mooloolaba Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, ol’ Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on offer at Mooloolaba over the next couple of weeks.

Alright, so the short story is: we’ve got a bit of a slow start, but there’s a small window of cleaner, fun-sized surf to kick things off. Then it goes quiet for a long stretch before a little rumble of energy shows up late in the piece. Nothing huge, but you gotta work with what you’ve got.

Wednesday 8th July kicks things off with a solid 7ft SE swell rolling in, but it’s a bit of a messy one. The wind is a cross-off from the SSE at 15 mph, which keeps it from being complete junk, but the combined energy is still strong (2023). The wave comment says it’s a marginal call, and the score ain’t great. Not the best entry point.

Thursday 9th July is where it gets a bit more interesting. The morning sees a drop to 5ft from the SE, but the wind shifts to a clean offshore from the S at 12 mph. The combined energy is moderate (638), and the report says “expect good surf conditions.” That’s our standout. Mooloolaba is a beach and reef setup, and with offshore wind, it’ll be clean. The swell direction (SE) isn’t a perfect match for the optimum NE, but it’s workable. Keep in mind this spot is inconsistent and can get crowded often, so get there early. The water temp is about average for this time of year.

From Friday 10th July onwards, things start to fade. The swell drops into the 3ft to 6ft range, but the wind stays cross-off or shifts around, and the combined energy drops off (404 to 977). The scores are low, and the comments say “marginal” or “very ordinary.” By Saturday 11th July morning, we get a tiny window of glassy 3ft surf with glassy wind from the SSW, but it’s barely a ripple.

Then comes a long dry spell. From Sunday 12th July all the way through to Tuesday 21st July, the wave heights fall below 3ft, and the combined energy drops into the double digits (52, 38, 22, 23, 42, 32, 7, 3). The wind is often offshore, but there’s just no energy. The reports are consistently “poor surf conditions.” That’s a solid 10-day gap of nothing worth paddling out for.

Friday 17th July morning shows a tiny pulse of 4ft SE swell with offshore wind, but the combined energy is only 179, and the period is short (8 seconds). The report still says “poor.” Not worth the drive.

Saturday 18th July afternoon has a weird 0.7ft ESE swell with a very long period of 15 seconds, but the combined energy is a measly 26. That’s a ghost swell. The wind is a fresh 19 mph cross-off. Not for us.

Now, Tuesday 21st to Thursday 23rd July gives us a little more hope. Tuesday 21st July morning has 5ft ESE swell, offshore S wind at 6 mph, and a combined energy of 223. The report calls it “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions.” Not a standout, but it’s something after a long wait. The wind is light, so it’ll be clean. That’s probably the best of the second week, but it’s still pretty weak.

Wednesday 22nd and Thursday 23rd are back to poor conditions with onshore wind and short period swell.

So, to wrap it up: the best session is Thursday 9th July morning. It’s the only one with a decent mix of size, offshore wind, and moderate energy. After that, brace yourself for a long flat spell, with a tiny, clean but weak pulse on the 21st of July. Patience is the name of the game.

Rusty.

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