Norries Head Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's get real about what's coming up at Norries Head.

We’re looking at a very quiet stretch ahead, I gotta be honest. The next week and a half is mostly a write-off. The good news is we do have one standout session buried in there that makes it worth keeping an eye on. But for the most part, we’re waiting on the ocean to wake up.

The first real chance to paddle out comes on Saturday, July 11th. The morning is looking glassy with a light S wind at 3 mph. We’ll have a small 3 ft swell from the ESE, but the period is a long 13 seconds – that’s proper groundswell energy, which is better for a point break like Norries. The combined wave energy is pretty weak though, sitting at 195. It’s surfable, but very ordinary. The afternoon picks up a touch to 4 ft from the same direction, with a bit more energy (371), but the wind swings NE onshore. It’s a marginal call.

The real highlight, and the only time I’d get excited, is Sunday morning, July 12th. We’ve got an offshore WNW breeze at 9 mph, which will groom the point beautifully. The swell is a clean 4 ft from the SE, with a period of 10 seconds and moderate energy (253). Expect clean, fun, chest-high surf with those offshores grooming things up. It won’t be huge, but the conditions will be near-perfect for this stretch. Keep in mind, Norries is an inconsistent spot and crowds are often a factor here, so get in early.

The water temp is sitting at 70°, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

After that Sunday morning window, the surf drops right off. Monday the 13th through to Wednesday the 15th is flat to tiny, with weak, choppy conditions. Thursday the 16th and Friday the 17th bring a bit more wind, but it’s a raw, onshore mess with SSE winds howling at 22 mph combined with a short-period, low-energy swell (83-86). That setup looks far more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

We then hit a dead zone from the 18th through the 20th, with almost no swell. A small pulse of 2 ft to 2 ft from the E pops up on the 20th, but it’s mostly onshore or cross-shore. The next flicker of hope comes on Tuesday morning, July 21st, with a light offshore W wind and a 2 ft E swell (period 11 seconds, energy 152). The conditions will be clean, but the size is tiny. Then on Wednesday, July 22nd, a new SE swell pushes in at 4 ft (10-second period, energy 329) but the wind is cross-shore from the SSW all day, making the surf a bit of a mess.

So, bottom line: the pick of the lot is Sunday the 12th. Otherwise, it’s a long wait for anything decent. It’s not uncommon for Norries to go quiet like this, but it won’t stay poor forever.

Stay patient.
Rusty.

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