Pilgrim Avenue Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, time to have a look at Pilgrim Avenue. This is a reef and point setup, and it’s a bit of a tough stretch for the next fortnight. The water’s sitting at 70°, which is just about normal for this time of year, so no nasty surprises there.

The first week is pretty thin. We’ve got a few days of small, weak swell, mostly under 3ft from the south-southwest, with a short, choppy period around 6 to 7 seconds. The wind is a constant cross-off from the southwest, which is a decent direction for keeping the surface clean, but the wave energy is just too low. The combined energy barely cracks 100 (72) on the Wednesday morning, and it’s mostly in the 50-100 range for days after. Honestly, it’s a lot of “surfable but very ordinary” conditions. Thursday through Saturday are all scoring zeroes – you’re looking at very small, poor surf. Not worth paddling out for.

We do get a slight lift on Sunday the 9th and Monday the 10th with the swell nudging up to 3ft to 4ft, and the energy hitting 136 on Monday afternoon, but the wind picks up to a moderate breeze, and the scoring is still a zero. It’s just not linking up.

There’s a small window of calm on Wednesday the 12th and Thursday the 13th, with glassy conditions and offshore winds, but the swell is tiny – 2ft with a 6-second period. That’s barely a ripple. The energy is a measly 31 (Wednesday morning). Unless you’re on a longboard and it’s super high tide, it’s a skip.

The real action, if you can call it that, starts to appear around the second week. Monday the 17th brings a jump in swell to 5ft in the morning, building to 6ft in the afternoon, from the south with an 8-second period. The combined energy is strong – 265 in the morning, 327 in the afternoon. This is moderate to strong energy. But the wind is onshore, from the east and east-southeast, and that’s going to turn it into a messy, lumpy mess. The scoring is still a zero. For a point break, that onshore wind is a killer. It’s more of a kite day than a paddle day.

Tuesday the 18th is slightly better. The swell drops to 4ft, but the wind swings cross-off from the southwest in the afternoon, and the energy is still high at 239. That’s the best of the whole run. The surf is still “surfable but very ordinary”, but that’s the only real potential. The period is 8 seconds, so it’s not a groundswell, but at least it’s clean.

Wednesday the 19th afternoon is the real standout. The swell holds at 4ft, but the period jumps to 10 seconds, and the combined energy rockets to 366. That’s serious wave energy. The wind is a clean cross-off from the southwest. This is the only time in the whole 16 days where the swell size, period, and wind align for a decent session. It’s still not a huge swell, but the quality will be there. Expect clean, lined-up waves on the point. It’s the only one worth circling on the calendar.

Overall, it’s a sparse run. The first week is a write-off. The second week has one promising day on Wednesday the 19th afternoon, and a maybe on Tuesday the 18th afternoon. The rest is either too small, too windy, or too messy. The break is fairly consistent, which is the only saving grace – it tends not to stay this poor for long, but this stretch is a patience tester.

Rusty.

Read more