Rat Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for our little stretch.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – this 16-day window is a tough one. We’re looking at Rat Beach, and honestly, there’s no real standout session in the whole run. The swell is just too small and weak for most of it to get excited about.

We kick off on Tuesday, August 25th with a small 2ft SW groundswell, and the period is a lovely 16 seconds. That’s proper long-period groundswell, and combined energy is sitting at 177 (moderate energy). The morning has a clean cross-off breeze, so it’ll look alright, but the wave height is tiny. The water is a warm 72°, which is 6° warmer than normal – that’s very unusual for this time of year, feels like a bathtub. Wednesday continues the same small, clean theme, and even Thursday morning has a light offshore wind with 1ft of swell. The problem is, it’s just not enough to get the heart racing. The combined energy drops to a weak 75 by Thursday.

Then we hit a real dry spell. From Friday, August 28th, through to Monday, September 7th, it’s pretty much all poor conditions. The swell drops to pathetic 1ft to 2ft, the periods get short and weak (down to 3-6 seconds), and the wind is mostly cross-onshore or choppy. The energy readings are in the low double or single digits – 12, 28, 67 – just weak, messy junk.

There’s a little flicker on Sunday, August 30th morning, with 3ft of swell and a clean cross-off, but it’s still a short 7-second period and weak energy of 91. It’s surfable, but it’s nothing to write home about.

The only real blip of interest comes right at the tail end. On Wednesday, September 9th, we see a jump to 2ft of SW groundswell, with a 17-second period and combined energy climbing to 232 (moderate energy). The morning is clean with a light cross-off breeze. This is the best-looking window in the whole forecast, but it’s still a small wave and it’s over two weeks away, so take it with a grain of salt. That afternoon the wind goes cross-shore, still rideable.

Overall, if you’re desperate for a paddle on the small, clean days early on, you might get a few weak ones, but don’t expect anything with punch. For guaranteed better conditions, you might have to wait and see if the forecasts change. For now, the setup is more interesting for a kite than a paddle.

- Rusty

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