Out Front Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get real about the next couple of weeks. I’ve been staring at the charts for our stretch of coast, and honestly, it’s a tough stretch for anyone who wants to actually paddle out and get a wave. We’re looking at a long, dry spell of surf for the most part. Don’t get me wrong, there’s water moving, but it’s not doing us any favors. We’ve got a big gap of nothing on offer until we get to that last weekend, and even then, it’s a marginal call.

The first week or so is pretty grim. From Wednesday the 5th through to the 11th, it’s just onshore slop and wind chop. The swell is tiny, under 3 feet, and the wind is mostly cross-onshore or cross, which messes up any chance of a clean face. The energy is weak, with combined readings mostly in the double digits, like 23 or 49, which is just no good. You’re looking at waves that are soft and bumpy, and the period is short, around 4-6 seconds, so there’s no punch to them. It’s a write-off.

We do get a brief tease on the morning of Sunday the 9th. The wind goes light cross-offshore, and the swell bumps up slightly to 4ft from the south, with a period of 6 seconds. The combined energy jumps to 131. It’s clean, but it’s still small and weak. It’s the best of a bad bunch, but it’s not exactly firing. You’d be scratching for anything.

Then we go right back into the doldrums. The middle of the week is flat, with tiny waves and onshore winds again. The mornings are clean but with almost no swell—we’re talking 0.6ft to 1ft. It’s not worth getting wet for.

The first real glimmer of hope comes on the morning of Thursday the 13th. The wind swings offshore from the WNW, and while the swell is still small at 1ft, it’s got a bit more period to it, 7 seconds. It’s clean, but you’d need a longboard and a lot of patience.

Now, let’s talk about the one standout in this whole period. It’s not a classic, but it’s the best we’ve got. On the morning of Saturday the 15th of August, we finally see a pulse of groundswell. The swell height jumps to 4ft from the south, with a period of 7 seconds. The combined energy is 218, which is the strongest we’ll see in this whole run. The wind is light from the NE, which is cross-shore, creating some cross-ripple, but it’s not a complete mess. This is our window. It’s not perfect, but it’s the most surfable and biggest swell of the fortnight. The water temp is 77°, which is pretty much average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

After that, we get a few more small pulses. The morning of Sunday the 16th has a clean 4ft from the south with a 6-second period, and the wind is offshore, so it’s clean. The energy is 136. But it’s still not big. The afternoon of Monday the 17th is clean, but tiny.

The real takeaway is this: we’re in for a long stretch of poor conditions. The only time it looks like it might be worth a paddle is that Saturday the 15th. It’s a single highlight in a sea of onshore mush. Keep your expectations low, and maybe rig up the kite if that’s your thing, because for a lot of these days with onshore wind and small, weak swell, that setup is going to be more fun than trying to surf it.

Rusty

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