Sandy Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here, and I’ve gotta be straight with you – the next couple of weeks at Sandy Beach look pretty average, to be honest. We’ve got a bit of size on the way, but the wind is just a nightmare for most of the period, keeping things messy and lumpy. There’s no real standout session, but let’s walk through it.

The swell energy starts off strong – we’re talking a combined energy of 2200 (moderate to strong) on Saturday afternoon, September 5th, with a 7ft swell from the ENE. The problem is the wind: a fresh 19 mph cross-shore from the NE. That’s gonna leave the surface with a lumpy cross-chop. Water temp’s sitting at a warm 81°, which is pretty much normal for this time of year – no surprises there.

Sunday the 6th stays chunky, with 6ft to 8ft ENE swell, but the wind’s cross-on and fresh, making things ugly. Monday and Tuesday aren’t any better – same story of moderate to fresh cross-onshore winds and choppy, lumpy conditions. The swell energy is still strong (over 2000 on Monday), but you’d be fighting the wind the whole time.

Wednesday the 9th sees a drop in size – 3ft from the SSW with a long 14-second period, which is a nice groundswell, but the wind’s still cross-on and the energy is weak (529). It’s only marginal at best, and the conditions are fairly choppy. That’s as close to a window as we get, but it’s not really worth paddling out for.

Thursday and Friday the 10th and 11th offer a bit more size (4ft) but the period drops to 7 seconds – that’s super short period, sloppy, junk waves. The wind stays cross or cross-on, and the energy is weak (around 380-522). No good.

The second week is a bit of a mixed bag, but still nothing to get excited about. From the 12th to the 16th, we’ve got 4ft to 6ft ENE swell, but the period is short (7-10 seconds), and the wind is moderate to fresh cross-shore or cross-on. The energy is weak (under 500). The 14th and 15th have lighter winds (6-9 mph), but the swell is short-period and the conditions are still only marginal. For a beach and reef setup like Sandy Beach, that short period means the waves won’t have any shape or power.

On the 17th, the swell switches to a tiny 3ft from the SSW with a very long 16-second period – that’s a proper groundswell, but it’s too small to do anything, and the wind is still cross-shore and moderate. The 18th and 19th hold that long-period SSW swell (17 seconds), but it’s only 4ft, and the wind is cross-on or onshore, keeping it choppy. The energy is moderate (1000-1267) but the conditions are poor.

The 20th is a write-off – 3ft SSW swell, fresh cross-shore wind, and weak energy (552).

So, what’s the best of a bad bunch? Honestly, nothing here is a standout. The only thing that might be worth a glance is Wednesday the 9th – that 3ft SSW groundswell with a 14-second period could give a few clean-ish lines if the wind drops, but it’s not gonna get the heart racing. The rest is just blown-out, short-period junk or too small. For a spot that’s fairly consistent, it’s a rough patch – but it won’t stay this way forever. Keep an eye on the long-range SSW groundswells for the second week, but the wind needs to sort itself out.

Rusty.

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