Mooloolaba Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's take a look at what the next couple of weeks have in store for us in feet and miles per hour.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – it's a pretty quiet start. For the first few days, we're looking at tiny, weak waves. The energy is just not there. From Tuesday the 11th through to the weekend, we're talking ankle to maybe knee-high dribblers, around 1 ft to 2 ft from the east. The combined swell energy is sitting in the low double digits (30-110), so there's barely a pulse. The wind does offer some brief windows of calm, like a glassy period on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, but with waves that small, you're honestly better off on a longboard or just having a swim.

We hit a bit of a lull from late Thursday the 13th through Saturday the 16th. The swell drops right off, and the wind becomes a persistent cross-off from the SSE, which does keep the surface clean, but with heights down to 1 ft, it's just not surfable. You'd be scratching for anything.

Then things get interesting, but not necessarily in a good way. Starting Monday the 17th, the swell picks up to 6 ft-6 ft from the SE, and the combined energy jumps up (262-319). The problem? The period is short, just 6-7 seconds, so it's going to be lumpy, bumpy, and messy. On top of that, we've got rain showers and winds sitting around 15-18 mph out of the SSE, keeping it cross-off. For Mooloolaba, being a beach and reef set-up, that short-period swell is going to dump all at once, making it a bit of a chore. This pattern holds through Wednesday the 19th, with the swell staying in the 5 ft-6 ft range and the energy peaking at 454.

Now, let's talk about the one moment that could actually be worth the wait. Thursday the 20th morning sees the swell jump again to 7 ft from the ESE, and the wind goes lighter and clearer out of the S. The combined energy is strong at 547. It's still cross-off, but the conditions are clean. The real standout is into Friday the 21st of August. On Friday morning, we've got a solid 7 ft groundswell from the ESE, and the period stretches out to a proper 10 seconds. The combined energy is massive at 1425. Now, this is where I get a little cautious. For a beach and reef set-up like Mooloolaba, a long-period swell (11+ seconds) tends to jack up and close out. But at 10 seconds, it's in that sweet spot of having enough energy to wrap around and hold its shape. The wind is a moderate offshore from the S at around 15 mph, keeping it clean. This setup leans towards the expert side of things – 7 ft is not for beginners – but for the experienced crew, that Friday morning window is the best on offer in the whole outlook, despite the crowds that are often there.

The rest of the second week drops back off. From Saturday the 22nd into the end of the window, the swell fades to 3 ft-5 ft, the energy drops, and wind shifts around. It's clean but small, with a few marginal windows on Sunday the 23rd afternoon and Tuesday the 25th morning when the wind turns offshore. Nothing to get overly excited about, but a longboard could still find a fun one.

Stay patient, that Friday the 21st is the one to circle on the calendar.

Rusty.

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