Noorderstrand Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, letting you know there's been a real quiet spell on the cards for us. The forecast opens with very ordinary conditions, and honest to god, for the first week there’s barely a single session that’s worth paddling out for. The wind is all over the shop – mostly cross, cross-on, or just howling out of the WSW or W, absolutely messing with any chance of a clean face.

To be blunt, from the 2nd right through to the 5th of September, you’re looking at onshore mess and lumpy water. That 8ft of WSW swell rolling in on Friday the 4th might grab your attention, but with a strong breeze kicking up a messy cross-chop and a period of only 7 seconds, it’s a frustrating one.

The first genuine glimmer comes on the morning of Sunday the 6th. It’s small, only 2ft of NNW swell, but the wind finally clocks around to a light offshore from the SE (15 km/h). That light offshore breeze is a major positive. You’ll get little, clean peelers at Noorderstrand, but it’s a gentle session. The energy is weak (combined swell energy of just 51), so don’t expect to get your heart rate up. That late afternoon drops off totally again.

Then we’re back to a real wasteland; a lot of days with either no swell or next to nothing, and the 'poor surf conditions' tag sticks like a bad smell. Monday the 8th kicks up a bit of height but with a fresh onshore cross breeze, it’s rubbish.

Thursday the 10th sees the biggest push of the period – a 7ft swell from the NW (combined energy of 609). That’s a decent amount of water. Thursday morning is coming in from the WSW cross-on (12 mph) which will chop it up, but that afternoon the wind swings NW and becomes gentle onshore. The wave period stretches to 7 seconds. For Noorderstrand, this is about as raw as it gets. It’ll be big, but with that cross-on wind, you’re fighting the texture. This is not a beginner kind of day; it’s all for the gun-slingers who want to grunt. The period is too short for real groundswell magic here.

By Friday the 11th, the swell is dropping back to 5ft with light cross-on winds from the N. The guidance rates it as marginal surf. The period is hanging at 7 seconds, so still a wind swell.

From the 12th onwards, everything just fades out again – swell sizes drop under 3ft, the energy blows out and the window shuts. There just isn't any juice in the tank for the second week. The forecast is a bumpy ride with very, very few windows of clean surf.

The standout, if you can call it that, is the early Sunday morning of the 6th. It’s not epic, but for this region, a clean, offshore 2ft on the face is the pick of a very average lot.

Stay tuned, the forecasts can flip, but right now? It's a board-waxing and story-swapping week.

Rusty

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