Norries Head Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here with a look at what’s coming our way on the Northern Rivers coast. Gotta be straight with you – it’s a tough stretch ahead. There’s a big, long quiet spell to get through before any hope of a wave, and even then, it’s not a straightforward call.

Right now and for the next several days, we’re in a flat spell. The energy is just not there. Looking at Norries Head, it’s a point break that’s notoriously inconsistent, and that’s really showing here. Starting from Sunday the 26th of July right through to Friday the 1st of August, it's a wasteland. Swell heights are barely scraping 3 ft with weak energy readings mostly under 100, and the wind is all wrong – onshore or cross-shore junk. Water temp is sitting at 69°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

We finally get a little tickle of life on the morning of Sunday the 2nd of August. A pulse of 2 ft swell from the SE with a period of 15 seconds – that’s proper long-period groundswell energy building to 154, but the wind is a cross-shore Southerly at 9 mph, and it’s classed as poor. Not enough to get excited about. That afternoon the energy jumps to 356 with 3 ft, but the wind swings cross-onshore, chopping it up.

The first real flicker of hope comes on Monday the 3rd of August morning. We see 6 ft of SE swell, period 12 seconds, and combined energy pumping up to 775. That’s a moderate energy swell, but it’s still only rated as marginal surf. The wind is a light cross-shore from the South, so it’s not all bad, but it’s not clean. That afternoon the swell drops to 5 ft, and the wind goes onshore from the ESE. It’s rideable for the experienced, but for a point break like Norries Head that likes a good direction, the swell is coming from the SE which isn't its optimum (NE is better), and the period is still decent at 11 seconds.

Now, the window to watch is Tuesday the 4th of August. This is the standout, and it’s the only one worth marking on your calendar. Morning brings a clean 3 ft from the ESE with an 11-second period, but the wind is the key – it’s a light cross-offshore breeze from the NNW. That’s clean. The energy is a solid 243. Then the afternoon gets even better: a solid 4 ft from the ESE, period 10 seconds, and a light offshore wind from the NW at 6 mph. This is the best quality on offer. The water should be clean, the waves small but workable for beginners, and the crowd potential is there – Norries Head often gets busy. For the whole 16-day outlook, Tuesday the 4th of August is your only real chance for a proper session. After that, the wind turns ugly again and we’re back to poor conditions.

Looking further out, the 10th of August (Monday) shows a big spike in energy – 1675 and 2947 with swell heights of 8 ft and 10 ft from the ESE, but that’s a solid winter swell. At over 8 ft, this is for experts only, and the wind is onshore with rain. That’s likely going to be a washing machine and more interesting for the kites than the paddle crew.

So, to sum it up: get through the first week of flatness, and keep your eyes on Tuesday the 4th of August. It’s not huge, but it’s the cleanest, most surfable wave we’re going to see for a while.

Stay patient.
Rusty

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