North Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here, lookin' at the charts for North Beach. Bit of a mixed bag ahead, but we've got a couple of moments that are worth paddling out for, so don't write the whole fortnight off just yet.

The long-range picture is a bit of a slow burn. We're looking at a solid week of average to poor conditions before a real window of opportunity opens up. The first few days are a write-off with strong onshore winds and messy, lumpy surf. The swell is mostly short-period windswell, and the energy is weak to moderate, with values like 987 (Friday morning) and 1633 (Friday afternoon) – nothing to get excited about in terms of quality. The water temp is about normal for the time of year at 69°F.

Alright, the first real standout is shaping up for Tuesday, 15th September. The swell starts to build from the South, and the wind switches to a clean cross-offshore from the Southwest. The morning is a bit average, but the Tuesday afternoon session is the pick of the whole forecast. We're looking at a solid 7ft S swell with a period of 10 seconds, which is a decent groundswell with good energy. The combined energy is a strong 1083, and with a gentle cross-offshore breeze, the waves are going to be clean and lined up. This is a proper intermediate wave, not for the grommets, but for anyone who's comfortable on a 6ft+ wave, this is your session. North Beach is a fairly consistent spot, and it's a beach/pier setup, so crowds are possible. If you can get there, this is the day.

After that, it gets a bit tricky again. A pulse of swell from the ENE on Wednesday, 16th September pushes the size up to 10ft in the afternoon, but it's a short-period windswell (8 seconds) with a nasty cross-on wind. The notes say it's too big for this break, and with the wind, it's gonna be a messy, bowling close-out. Only for the real experts or the kamikaze crew.

There's a little glimmer on Friday, 18th September with a tiny 2ft SSW groundswell and offshore winds. The period is 17 seconds, which is super long, so it'll be slow and fat, but if you've got a log, the morning session will be glassy clean. The energy is weak (288), so don't expect much power.

The final note for Saturday, 19th September sees a 5ft S swell with a long 14-second period, but onshore winds chop it up. It's a pity, because the energy is there (1158), but the wind is a deal-breaker.

So, bottom line: the first week is a right-off. The best surf on offer is the Tuesday 15th September afternoon, with the Friday 18th September morning a distant second for the longboarders. Don't hold your breath for the rest.

Rusty.

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