North Stradbroke - Pt Lookout Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s be real upfront: the next couple of weeks at Point Lookout on North Stradbroke are not gonna give us much to write home about. We’ve got a long stretch of pretty ordinary conditions, with only a couple of brief windows where it might be worth paddling out. The first proper recommendation doesn’t show up ’til Sunday the 23rd of August, and even then it’s a one-star day.

The overall picture: We’re looking at a drawn-out period of weak, short-period swell, mostly from the ENE, with average heights around 3–4 ft. The combined energy is low to moderate at best (114 to 228 units). Winds are gonna be a problem almost the whole time—mostly onshore or cross-off, often fresh. Water temp is 69°F, which is about normal for this time of year.

Sunday morning 23rd August is the first chance, and it’s marginal. Surf is 3 ft from the ENE at 8 seconds—small, weak stuff. The wind is off the land though, a moderate breeze from the SSE, so it’ll be clean. Combined energy is only 114, so don’t expect much push. It’s surfable but very ordinary. By afternoon the wind picks up to 19 mph and goes cross-off, dropping the wave height to 3 ft. Not worth chasing.

From Monday 24th through to Saturday 29th it’s pretty much a write-off. Winds stay onshore, cross, or cross-on most of the time, with rain showers, light rain, and clouds. Swell stays small—3 ft to 4 ft—and the period’s short at 7–9 seconds. Combined energy tops out at 228 on Friday morning but conditions are still poor. Not a single session above a 0 score in that stretch.

Sunday 30th August morning has a bit more size—3 ft at 10 seconds from the E—and combined energy hits 260. But the wind is a fresh SSE breeze, cross-off, and with rain showers around. It’s clean, but still scored as poor. The afternoon cleans up a bit but remains poor.

Monday 31st August morning drops to a tiny 1 ft from the E at 9 seconds with only 38 energy units—hardly worth a look, even with fresh offshore SSE wind. The afternoon bumps back up to 4 ft from the E at a very short 6 seconds (186 energy). That’s peaky and messy, not ideal.

Now, the closest we get to a standout is Tuesday 1st September. Morning gives us 5 ft from the E at 7 seconds, with 297 combined energy. That’s the biggest swell of the whole run, and it’s clean with a moderate SE breeze cross-off. It’s scored as marginal, but if you’re an experienced surfer who can handle that short-period bump, Tuesday morning is the pick of a very average window. The afternoon drops to 4 ft and is cleaner but still ordinary.

Wednesday 2nd September morning is worth a mention, not for size but for the rare glassy conditions. Winds are calm, dead still, and the swell is 4 ft from the ENE at 9 seconds (207 energy). It’ll be clean and smooth, but the swell is small and short. If you’ve got a log or a mid-length, it could be a fun, uncrowded window—but keep the expectations low.

From Thursday 3rd September through to Monday 7th September, it’s back to onshore winds, mostly from the N or NNE, fresh at times, with swell staying tiny at 2–3 ft and weak energy (88–185 units). Nothing to recommend here. The whole second week is a bust.

Bottom line: There’s no real standout session. Tuesday 1st September morning has the most size and clean-ish wind, but it’s short-period and only for those who don’t mind a lumpy 5 ft. Wednesday 2nd morning is the cleanest of the run, but it’s small. The rest is a long, frustrating gap of poor conditions. For kite surfers, those big onshore wind days late in the run might offer better fun.

Rusty.

Read more