Roads End Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's cookin' for Roads End over the next couple of weeks. It's a bit of a mixed bag, to be honest, so we gotta pick our moments.

The early part of the run is pretty flat and frustrating. We're looking at a long stretch of weak, messy conditions right through the first few days. You’ve got a tiny 2ft southwest groundswell bumping in from Sunday, but it's got that cross-onshore wind messing it up. The combined energy is barely ticking over (346), and the call is "marginal" at best. Honestly, it's not worth paddling out for. That same pattern drags on through Monday and Tuesday, with the swell staying small and the wind staying ugly. There's a solid gap here where you're better off doing something else.

Things start to get interesting towards the end of the first week. By Thursday the 10th, we see the swell bumping up to 5ft from the NW, and the energy is climbing into a moderate range (545). But the wind is still a problem, holding it back. It's not until Friday morning the 11th that we finally get a pulse of real energy. The swell hits 7ft from the NW with a combined energy reading of 1083. That's a strong push of water. Now, the period is short at 9 seconds, so it's gonna be a bit bumpy and fat, and the wind is still cross-shore, so it won't be perfect. This is for the more experienced crew – anything over 5ft starts getting too much for beginners, and at 7ft it's expert territory. It's still only getting a marginal rating, but the power is there.

Now, here's where it gets good. The standout of the whole forecast is Monday morning, the 14th of September. We get a solid 6ft NW swell rolling in, and the wind… the wind goes *glassy*. That's the magic word. The combined energy is a solid 511, and the conditions are described as "expect very good surf conditions." That morning is your window. It's going to be clean, lined up, and with that long-period groundswell (8 sec period) it'll have some push. For a beach and reef setup like Roads End, that glassy morning is the one to circle on the calendar. The surf will be a bit big for groms, but for the average surfer, that's a quality session.

After that peak, it fades. The swell drops back down through the 3-4ft range later in the second week, and the wind gets messy again. There are a few more pulses of long-period southwest swell (18-19 seconds) around the 18th and 19th, but they're tiny, only 2ft to 2ft. The energy is there in the longer period, but there's just not enough height to make it worth your while. Those long-period swells are better for a point break, but at Roads End, with no size, they'll be weak and inconsistent.

So, to wrap it up: sit out the first week. Your best bet is Monday morning, September 14th, for clean, punchy waves. After that, it's a slow fade into smaller, wind-affected conditions again.

Stay frothy.
Rusty.

Read more