Sawtell-The Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, this is Rusty. Let’s have a look at what’s coming up for Sawtell’s The Island. This is an exposed, advanced break that can really fire when the stars align, and it’s a fairly consistent one too. The water temp is sitting at 68°, which is about average for this time of year, so nothin’ wild there.

The next few days are pretty quiet. Sunday the 12th starts with a small 3ft ESE swell, period 10 seconds, and a light WNW cross-off breeze. Combined energy is moderate (262), and the waves are clean – a nice little session to ease into the week. Monday morning the 13th goes glassy with a tiny 2ft ESE swell, period 8 seconds, and energy is weak (59). It’s tiny, but if you’re desperate for a paddle, it’s there. After that, things drop right off through Tuesday the 14th and Wednesday the 15th. There’s a few days of flat, poor conditions with hardly any energy – you’re looking at a gap of about 3 days with no real surf.

Then things get interesting, but maybe too interesting. Wednesday afternoon the 15th sees a sudden jump to 7ft from the SSE, period 7 seconds, strong wind from the S at 30 km/h, energy moderate (434), but it’s messy. Thursday the 16th brings a massive 12ft to 13ft SSE swell, with period 9 seconds, energy rocketing into the thousands (1838 to 2744), and a fresh 30-35 km/h S wind. The forecast says it’s too big for this break – that’s for experts only, and even then, it’s gonna be a handful. Friday the 17th and Saturday the 18th stay huge, 10ft from the SE, with strong cross-shore winds and lumpy chop. This is more kite-surfing territory than paddle surfing, fellas. Sunday the 19th is still pumping 13ft ESE swell, period 11 seconds, energy at a massive 5674, with a moderate S breeze – still too big for most of us.

The standout for the whole period is Monday the 20th. We get a 8ft E swell, period 10 seconds, energy solid (1070), and a light SSW cross-off breeze. This is excellent surf for experienced surfers – clean, punchy, and the direction is good for the break. It’s the best of the lot. Tuesday the 21st morning is also a gem – 5ft ESE swell, period 10 seconds, energy moderate (530), and glassy conditions with a S wind. That’s a clean, fun size for the advanced crew, and crowds are possible here, so get in early.

After that, into the second week, things settle. Wednesday the 22nd to Saturday the 25th offer smaller, cleaner waves, mostly in the 3ft to 4ft range, with offshore or light winds. The highlight there is Thursday the 23rd morning – 3ft E swell, period 10 seconds, energy moderate (209), and dead flat glassy conditions. That’ll be a fun, clean morning. The swell direction is from the ESE to E, which is the optimum for The Island, so these smaller days will still have shape.

Sunday the 26th shows a bit of a bump – 6ft from the S, period 8 seconds, with a moderate SSW breeze – but it’s a bit short-period and mixed. The last few days of the forecast taper off again, with small, weak swell.

So, the best on offer is Monday the 20th for the big clean swell, with Tuesday the 21st morning and Thursday the 23rd morning as the mellow glassy sessions. The massive stuff from the 16th to the 19th is for the brave or the kite crew.

Rusty out.

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