Roads End Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ll be straight with you—this 16-day window starts off pretty flat and lacklustre, and it takes a long time before we see anything worth paddling out for. The first real surf on offer is on Tuesday morning, 18th August, but it’s a sad little 2ft of SW swell, and the wind is a cross-on from the NW. The water is a freezing 54°, which is a whopping 6° colder than normal for this time of year—very unusual, so you’ll be needing a thick suit.

The whole first week is a struggle. Wednesday the 19th shows a slight bump to 3ft from the WNW, but with a cross-on wind and poor surf quality, it’s not worth getting excited about. Thursday the 20th has 4ft from the WNW (11 seconds period) and a bare whisper of cross-on wind, but the combined wave energy is still only moderate (597). It’s marginal, and the break is a beach-and-reef setup (Roads End) that’s fairly consistent but exposed to the W. Crowds are sometimes around.

Come Friday the 21st, it drops back to 3ft, and then Saturday and Sunday the 22nd–23rd see a short-period, junky NW swell of 4ft to 6ft (only 6–8 seconds) with moderate cross-shore winds. That’s poor surf, and the 6ft on Sunday afternoon starts to get a bit much for beginners, but it’s so messy it’s really only for the diehards. The combined energy Monday the 24th drops to 249, weak and forgettable.

The second week is a real grind. From Monday the 24th through to Sunday the 30th, it’s all tiny 1ft to 2ft SW groundswells with periods of 14–18 seconds, but persistent cross-on or cross winds from the NNW keep it choppy and clean-up is a battle. The long period means the swell is prone to closing out at this beach break, so it’s not doing us any favours. The combined energy sits between 165 and 297—weak. There’s almost nothing to recommend.

The one true standout in this whole outlook is Wednesday, 2nd September. That morning, the stars finally align. The swell is 4ft from the WNW at 11 seconds (moderate energy at 691), and the wind is glassy—dead calm from the WSW. That’s about as clean as it gets. The break is a beach-and-reef, and with a fairly consistent reputation, this could be a little gem. The offshore direction (W) matches the optimum swell direction, and the conditions are flagged as “expect very good surf.” Later that afternoon, it bumps up to 6ft from the WNW (12 seconds), which is too big for beginners, but for intermediates and up, with a light cross-shore, it’s still decent. That Wednesday morning is the best on offer, hands down—but it’s a long way off, so keep an eye on the forecast.

If you’re a kite surfer, the windy, choppy days in the first week might have some appeal, but for paddle surfing, it’s a quiet run until that early September morning.

Rusty.

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