Rapid Creek - Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s cut to the chase—this 16-day stretch is looking pretty terrible for a surf. We’ve got one spot on the radar, Rapid Creek - Beach, but it’s a tough watch. The overall pattern shows barely a ripple for the entire period, with the odd pulse of tiny west swell showing up, but nothing that’s going to get the heart racing. The first real recommendation doesn’t even show up until the morning of Thursday the 20th, and even then, it’s marginal. Before that, it’s a whole lot of nothing, with flat days and mushy little waves that won’t do anyone any favours.

Let’s walk through it. The first week is essentially a write-off. From Thursday the 6th right through to Wednesday the 12th, we’ve got a mix of flat conditions and tiny 0.3ft to 0.7ft slop out of the west. The energy is just dead, barely registering with values of 1 to 8. The winds are mostly cross-off in the mornings, which would be nice if there was anything to ride, but the afternoons switch to a cross-on shore and chop things up. A couple of mornings, like Saturday the 8th and Sunday the 9th, look clean with light breezes, but you’d be paddling around on a lake. There’s nothing here to even bother with.

The weekend of the 15th and 16th is the same story. Saturday morning the 15th has a moderate offshore ESE breeze at 16 mph, and Saturday afternoon goes glassy with a slight air, but there’s still no swell. It’s dead flat. Sunday the 16th has a fresh offshore breeze at 19 mph, but again, no waves. This is a stretch where the ocean is just resting, and honestly, for a beach break like this, that’s not uncommon. It’s a flat spell, plain and simple.

Now, we finally get a whisper of something on the morning of Thursday the 20th of August. The swell is a tiny 0.3ft from the west, with a period of 19 seconds – that’s a long-period groundswell, which is promising in theory, but there’s barely any energy behind it. The combined energy is only 7, which is weak. The wind is a cross-off easterly at 12 mph, so it’ll be clean, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a rideable wave. The swell direction from the west is close to the WNW optimum for this spot, so it’s got the right idea, but it’s just not delivering any size.

The standout, and really the only window worth mentioning, is the morning of Friday the 21st of August. Still tiny at 0.3ft from the west, with a 17-second period and energy of 6. Winds are a cross-off easterly at 12 mph. It’s the same story – clean, but incredibly small. This is a spot that’s “fairly consistent” and “fairly exposed” to WNW swell, but the reality is, there’s nothing to surf. The 0.3ft is barely a ripple, and while the long period suggests some push, it’s just not enough. For a beach break, a long period like this also tends to make things break a bit too straight, so even if there was size, it wouldn’t be ideal. It’s also rated for intermediate surfers, but with waves this small, it’s not beginner-friendly nor is it anything for an expert to get excited about.

The water temp is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there. There’s a crowd risk here, listed as “rare,” so you won’t be fighting for a peak, but that’s because no one in their right mind is out there. There are no standout days, no proper swell, and the second week looks just as forgettable. Honestly, if you’re keen for a paddle, you might get a few gutless ones on Thursday and Friday mornings, but that’s it. The setup looks more interesting for a kite than a surfboard, given the lack of waves and the onshore afternoon breezes. Keep your board in the car, this one’s a bust.

Rusty.

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