Spew Pits Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s coming our way.

Overall, the picture for the next couple of weeks is a bit of a mixed bag. There's wave energy, but the wind and quality are throwing a lot of curveballs. The standout window is early on, but even that has a catch. We’ll start with some solid swell, then things get small and messy, before a more promising-looking, but less certain, pulse tries to sneak in at the tail end of the forecast.

So, our main event. Spew Pits is a shallow, expert-only reef that loves a good NNW swell. We’ve got a pulse of Northern groundswell hitting on Saturday afternoon, the 29th of August. We’re looking at a pretty solid 6ft of swell from the North with a clean 11-second period. The combined energy is a solid moderate (756). The water temp is sitting at 76°, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year. The problem is the wind. A fresh NNE breeze at 19 mph, coming straight off the land, means it’s actually a clean offshore wind. The forecast says "clear" skies and the wave state is "clean", so the texture should be good. But, and this is a big but, it’s an expert wave and with that size and that cross-off wind, it's going to be critical. For the rippers, this Saturday afternoon is the best on offer.

Sunday the 30th drops off a touch in size, down to 5ft in the morning, but the period drops to 9 seconds. The wind is still cross-off, but the conditions are labelled "poor surf conditions" so don’t expect the same quality.

From Monday the 31st of August right through until the 5th of September, it’s a grind. Swell sizes hover around 4ft to 6ft, but the period is short (7 to 9 seconds) and the wind is either a fresh cross or cross-off. The wave comments are all "poor surf conditions" or "marginal". It’s going to be lumpy, choppy, and generally average. A bit of a spell of ordinary waves to sit through.

Now, we have a gap of about three days (6th to 8th of September) where the swell drops right off. On the 6th and 7th we see a tiny 2ft to 2ft swell from the NNW, but with a long period of 12 to 13 seconds. That’s a groundswell, but it's just too small to do much here.

After that, small windswell drifts back in for a few days (9th and 10th) but with periods of 6-7 seconds and the same fresh wind story. Not worth paddling for.

Then we get a little flicker of hope. On Friday the 11th of September, a new swell from the NW shows up with a long 12-second period and moderate energy (453). The wind is a lighter NNE breeze. The call is "marginal surf". It’s a long-range call, so treat it as a promising but less certain prospect. It's a groundswell window, and the long period could shape up nicely at this reef, but the wind needs to play ball.

The following Saturday morning, the 12th, the energy actually builds to a strong moderate (608) with a 4ft NW swell and a 12-second period, with lighter wind again. It gets a score of 2 out of 10 internally, which is the highest it gets. Still, it's "marginal". Then the forecast ends on Sunday the 13th with a similar NW swell of 4ft but with a very long period of 14 seconds (energy 759). Again, "marginal" is the word.

So, the clear standout is Saturday afternoon, the 29th of August for the crew who can handle Spew Pits in a stiff offshore. The rest of the window is mostly a write-off for good quality, with the 11th of September onwards being the only other time to keep an eye on, but that big period stuff is tricky. When it’s over 8ft it's for experts only here, but we don't hit that. The key issue all the way through is the persistent northerly wind. It’s keeping things clean, but it's also cross or cross-off, and it’s not allowing the waves to really groom into the shape we want. The 6ft on Saturday is the biggest and best Swell and energy combo.

Later, on the 11th of September onwards, the groundswell is interesting, but with the lighter wind, it might hold together. The Sunday the 13th with that 14-second period could be very slow, but those set waves will have some punch. It's not a classic forecast, but if you pick your moment, there’s a wave to be had.

Rusty.

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