Saint Annes Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, I’m Rusty. Let’s be straight up — the next two weeks at Saint Annes are looking pretty grim. This is a sheltered reef break that really needs a clean WSW to WNW swell to get going, but the conditions just aren’t cooperating for paddle surfing. The whole run is a long stretch of poor to marginal surf, with the first real glimmer of anything worth getting wet for not showing up until Wednesday the 9th, and even that’s a struggle.

The first few days, from Sunday the 6th to Tuesday the 8th, are a write-off. Swell is tiny, between 1ft and 3ft, with a weak combined energy (434 down to 106), and the wind is all over the place — cross-on or cross, never clean. Not worth even looking at the water.

Things get a little more interesting Wednesday morning the 9th, when a long-period 19 second groundswell pushes through from the SSW at 2ft, with the combined energy jumping to 431. The wind goes light cross-on, but it’s still just “marginal” — the tide and swell are fighting each other. That same long-period pulse hangs around through Thursday the 10th morning with a bit more size (3ft) and stronger energy (744), and again light cross winds. These are the best two sessions of the whole outlook, but you’d want to be a local who knows the reef’s finicky tide windows. The water’s sitting at 62°, about average for this time of year.

From Thursday afternoon through the weekend of the 12th-13th, the swell shifts to a short-period 7-8 second WNW windswell, and the size jumps to 8ft on Saturday afternoon and again Sunday afternoon. The combined energy hits 933 and 1035, which is strong, but the wind is a fresh to moderate cross-shore, making it lumpy and messy. That’s too big for beginners and, with that short period and cross-wind, only a handful of experts would bother — and even then, it’s more likely to appeal to kite surfers looking for some punch in the windswell.

The second week drags on with similar story: Monday the 14th through Friday the 18th sees waist-to-chest high WNW swell, mostly 4ft to 6ft, but it’s all short-period windswell (7-11 seconds) with cross to cross-on breezes. The combined energy sits in the 500-700 range, which is moderate, but the quality just isn’t there. Nothing clean enough to call a standout.

Saturday the 19th and Sunday the 20th see a return of longer-period SSW groundswell (16-18 seconds) but at only 2ft to 3ft, and light onshore winds. That’s a tease — the period is there, but the size isn’t, and the reef needs more push.

Bottom line: the only two windows worth a look are Wednesday morning the 9th and Thursday morning the 10th, when that long SSW groundswell lines up with light winds. The rest is a long, flat, choppy stretch. If you’re a surfer, keep your eyes on the forecast for a change. It tends not to stay this poor forever. If you’re a kiter, there’s a bit of wind and swell mid-month that might get you interested.

Stay salty,
Rusty

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