North wall Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Righto folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the menu for Northwall over the next couple of weeks. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, to be honest. We’re starting off with some serious size, but the conditions aren’t playing ball for a good chunk of the forecast.

First up, we’ve got a strong pulse of swell rolling in on Thursday the 10th of September. The waves are a solid 12 ft from the SSE with a solid period of 9 seconds. While that’s proper groundswell energy (1788 – moderate to strong wave energy), this is just too big for the Northwall beach/groyne setup, especially if you’re a beginner. Anything over 8 ft is expert territory. The wind is a fresh 35 km/h cross-offly from the S, which has the face looking clean, but the sheer size is the limiting factor. The water temp is sitting at 69°F, which is about normal for this time of year, so nothing weird going on there.

The swell hangs in the 7 ft to 10 ft range on Friday the 11th, but the wind swings cross-shore from the SSE at 20 km/h, and the wave comment says it’s marginal. The energy is moderating (799 and 637), so we’re losing that punch. The rest of that weekend into early next week is pretty average. The waves drop off, the winds turn onshore or cross-on, and the surf gets choppy. There’s not a great stand-out session for anyone looking for clean, fun waves.

Now, let’s skip ahead a bit because there’s one proper standout window. Mark your calendars for the morning of Tuesday the 22nd of September. The swell has dropped back to a much more manageable 4 ft from the SSE, with a period of 10 seconds. The real winner here is the wind: it’s glassy out of the ENE at only 5 km/h. That is a major positive for the Northwall. The wave energy is low-to-moderate (327), but for a spot that’s very consistent and exposed to the swell, this is a sweet spot. Expect clean, lined-up sets with minimal chop. The conditions are described as ‘expect good surf conditions,’ which is the best call in the whole run. Crowds are ‘sometimes’ an issue here, so get out early.

The other morning to keep an eye on is Sunday the 13th of September. The wind is glassy out of the SE at just 5 km/h, with a 4 ft SSE swell and a 10-second period. It’s surfable, but the wave comment says “ordinary conditions,” so it’s not on the same level as the 22nd.

The rest of the run into late September sees a lot of onshore cross-shore wind and poor conditions. There’s a spike in size again around the 19th and 20th (7 ft to 8 ft) but with strong onshore winds (30 km/h from the NNE), it’s going to be a lumpy, messy mess. Not worth paddling out for a paddle surfer – this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing, honestly.

So, the bottom line: the first week is a write-off due to size and wind, with a small window on Sunday the 13th being just okay. The standout is the morning of Tuesday the 22nd. That’s your best bet for clean, fun waves at Northwall. It’s a long way out, so the certainty is lower, but the forecast is pointing in the right direction.

Rusty.

Read more