Rainbow Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Rainbow Bay over the next couple of weeks.

Right now we’re in a bit of a flat spell. The first surf worth paddling out for is Saturday afternoon, 11 July, with a clean 4ft swell from the ESE at 12 seconds—that’s a nice long groundswell, proper energy behind it (617). Wind’s glassy, coming in light from the NNE at just 3 mph, so the surface will be buttery. This is a sheltered point break, so it handles that ESE direction well. Water temp’s sitting at 70°, which is pretty much normal for this time of year—no surprises there. The morning of Sunday 12 July is a write-off—cross-on wind and choppy, so skip it. Same story Sunday afternoon and Monday.

Things start to get interesting from Wednesday afternoon, 15 July. We’ve got a strong offshore wind from the south at 19 mph, pushing 6ft of short-period SSE swell (6 seconds). That’s a windswell, and the combined energy is moderate (252). It’ll be clean, but the short period means waves will be a bit crumbly—better for experienced guys on a point break like Rainbow Bay.

Now, Thursday 16 July through to Tuesday 21 July is the standout run. Thursday morning brings a solid 12ft SSE swell with a 9-second period—combined energy’s cranked up to a very strong 2296. Offshore winds from the SSE at 19 mph will keep it clean, but bro, 12ft at a sheltered point is serious. That’s expert territory only, and the SSE direction is a little off the optimum SE for Rainbow Bay, so expect some bigger sets but maybe not perfect shape. Friday holds similar—12ft, SE swell, cross-off winds—still heavy, still only for those who know what they’re doing.

The real gem looks like Monday morning, 20 July. Glassy conditions, no wind, with a 10ft ESE groundswell pulsing in at 11 seconds and combined energy of 2054. That’s excellent, powerful, and clean—proper stand-out session for experienced surfers. Tuesday morning, 21 July, keeps the quality up: 10ft ESE swell, even longer period at 13 seconds, light offshore from the south at 6 mph, combined energy 2514. That’s a very long-period groundswell—waves will have heaps of energy and nice shape, but at a point break like Rainbow Bay, it’ll give some sweet, lined-up walls. Both Monday and Tuesday mornings are absolute highlights.

Wednesday 22 July eases a bit—7ft, still long-period (12 seconds), light offshore—still good for experienced crew. Thursday 23 July drops to 5ft, clean offshore wind, fun for intermediate surfers. From there it fades into smaller, cleaner but ordinary surf through the end of the month—nothing to get excited about.

So, the best on offer is Monday 20 July and Tuesday 21 July mornings—big, long-period groundswell, glassy or light offshore winds, and powerful clean waves at a point break that’ll handle it. It’s expert-level stuff, so if you’re not in that league, sit this one out. Crowds are often a thing at Rainbow Bay, so factor that in.

Rusty.

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