Roaches Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, it’s been a rough stretch for surf around Roaches Reef, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. The next week and a bit is mostly a write-off, with a lot of onshore wind and messy conditions, but we’ve got a couple of sessions that’ll be worth the wait. The water is sitting at 68°, which is much warmer than usual for this time of year, so you won’t need a thick wetsuit.

The first real standout is Monday morning, 31 August. It’s still not perfect, but the wind is cross-offshore from the west at 19 mph, which is clean. The swell is a solid 7 ft from the WSW with a 9-second period, and the combined energy is moderate (560). It’s a roping wave for intermediates, but the onshore wind picks up in the afternoon, so get in early.

The real highlight comes on Saturday, 5 September. The morning session is looking clean with a light cross-offshore breeze from the NW at 6 mph. The swell is a punchy 5 ft from the WSW with an 11-second period, which is a nice long-period groundswell. That longer period means better-shaped waves and more energy, with a combined energy reading of 561. This is a reef break, so it’ll handle that period well. It’s an exposed spot, with the optimum swell direction from the SW, and this WSW swell is a close match. Expect very good surf conditions. Just be aware that crowds are possible here sometimes.

The other cracker is Thursday, 10 September. The morning is glassy and clean with a cross-offshore breeze from the NE at 9 mph. The swell is 6 ft from the WSW with a 10-second period, and the combined energy is strong (888). That’s a lot of punch. The afternoon is even better—glassy conditions with a light ESE breeze, and the swell bumps up to 7 ft from the WSW with a 7-second period. That’s expert territory at that size, so only the experienced crew should paddle out. It’s a beautiful window, but it’s a long way off, so keep an eye on it.

Outside of those windows, there’s a lot of wind and chop. The whole first week is blown out, with a run of mostly poor surfs from Wednesday 26 August through to Sunday 30 August. After Monday 31 August, the wind turns nasty again. Tuesday 1 September and Wednesday 2 September are ordinary, with a brief glassy window on the 2nd but the swell is only 3 ft to 3 ft. After that, it’s back to onshore winds until the 5th. There’s a gap of several days of poor conditions before the 5th, and then another gap of poor conditions until the 10th. So, get your sessions in on those two standouts.

Rusty.

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