North Stradbroke - Pt Lookout Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ve had a proper look at what’s coming down the line for North Stradbroke’s Point Lookout, and I’m gonna be straight with ya—it’s a tough run. We’re staring down the barrel of a long, quiet spell. The energy is low and the conditions aren’t playing ball at all. The water temperature is sitting at 69°, which is about 1° cooler than the normal for this time of year, so pretty average, nothing wild.

We start off on Monday the 24th of August through the whole week, and it’s a write-off. The swell is a weak, short-period 3ft out of the ENE with a period of just 8 seconds and combined energy of 119 (weak) on Monday, but a cross-shore easterly breeze at 9 mph has it chopped up, and the wave comment says it all: poor surf conditions. Tuesday and Wednesday are the same story—tiny swell, poor wind directions, mainly cross-onshore, and the energy drops off into double digits. By Thursday the 27th, a fresh SSE offshore picks up to 22 mph, cleaning up the surface, but the swell is still a pathetic 3ft and the wave comment still says poor surf conditions. It’s just not worth paddling out.

The weekend of the 29th and 30th? Forget it. Saturday has a measly 2ft swell with a 57 energy reading. Sunday the 30th gets a weird spike to 5ft from the ESE, but it’s a junky 6-second period, and even though it’s clean with a cross-offshore breeze, the wave comment still says poor surf conditions. That’s a red flag.

We finally see the first hint of something surfable on Friday the 28th of August morning. A 3ft ENE swell at 7 seconds, with a gentle 9 mph offshore from the south. The combined energy reads 143 (moderate). The wave comment says “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions.” I wouldn’t get too excited—it’s small, short-period, and the rating is a 1 out of 10. That’s the best we’ve got until the very start of September.

Tuesday the 1st of September morning shows a bit of life: 4ft from the ESE, 6-second period, with a light 6 mph SSE cross-offshore breeze. The energy jumps to 202 (moderate). Again, the wave comment says “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions” with a 1 out of 10. It’s the cleanest and most energetic we see, but that period is short, so expect lumpy, weak lines. That is the standout in this whole 16-day period.

Then it fades again. From Thursday the 3rd of September onward, we’re back to tiny, weak swell with periods barely cracking 8 seconds, and most of the wind is onshore or cross-onshore. The energy dips below 100 again. By Saturday the 5th, we’re down to 1ft. There’s a small bump on Sunday the 6th with a cleaner SE cross-offshore, but the swell is still only 1ft with a period of 10 seconds, energy at 75 (weak). That’s not even worth getting out of bed for.

So if you’re hanging for anything, mark the morning of Friday the 28th of August, or the morning of Tuesday the 1st of September. That’s your pick of a bad bunch. Be warned: Point Lookout can get busy, and with crowds listed as “sometimes,” expect company. It’s a consistent point break that’s fairly exposed to the swell, and it likes an easterly to ENE direction, which we get on those days. But with the short period and small size, it’s not going to be a classic.

The gap between decent windows is real—we’re talking days of nothing. It’s one of those stretches where the ocean just goes to sleep. Don’t force it, because the quality isn’t there.

Rusty.

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