Sponge bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you: the next couple of weeks at Sponge Bay are looking pretty ordinary. We’ve got a big pulse of swell coming through mid-week, but it’s going to be messy as all hell with strong onshore winds. If you’re looking for quality, you’re going to have to wait until the weekend, and even then it’s not going to be big, just clean. After that, it fades out into almost nothing. So, strap in.

The first bit of real surf shows up Tuesday morning, but it’s a write-off. There’s a moderate swell building out of the SSE at 4ft, but with a fresh onshore SSW breeze, it’s going to be lumpy and poor. That’s just a warm-up for the main event. Tuesday afternoon the swell jumps to 12ft from the south with an 11-second period, and the energy is cranking at 4388 – that’s strong. But again, the wind is cross-onshore and fresh, so it’s a complete mess. Not worth paddling out.

Wednesday is the real monster. Morning sees the swell peak at 16ft from the south with a 12-second period, and the energy is over 9000 – that’s very strong. But there’s a strong onshore breeze and rain showers. This is way too big and too blown out. Afternoon drops to 13ft but it’s still cross-onshore and bumpy. This is not surf for beginners, and honestly, it’s not surf for anyone unless you’re chasing a beating. That size and wind at a beach and reef setup like this is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Thursday morning the swell eases to 10ft from the south, but the westerly cross-onshore wind keeps it choppy. Still a mess. Thursday afternoon it drops to 6ft from the SSW, energy down to 1765, but it’s still cross-onshore and choppy. Marginal at best.

Now, here’s where things clean up. Friday morning, the wind swings around to a light cross-offshore out of the northwest. The swell is down to 5ft from the southeast with a 10-second period, and the energy is a moderate 680. The water temp is 56°, which is about normal for this time of year, a touch cooler than average. This is the standout of the whole window – small but clean, with that cross-off wind cleaning up the face. It’s the best you’ll get.

Friday afternoon stays clean, with a gentle cross-offshore from the ENE and a long-period 16-second SSE groundswell at 3ft. Long period for Sponge Bay is a bonus for shape, but it can also make it a bit straight at the beach breaks. Still, it’s clean and rideable.

Saturday morning looks similar – 5ft from the SE with a light cross-offshore wind. Clean, but the energy is dropping. Saturday afternoon is smaller, 4ft, still clean but the magic is fading. Sunday morning you’ve got 3ft of SE swell and a light cross-offshore – surfable but very ordinary.

After that, it’s a slow death. The swell drops below 3ft, and by mid-week next week we’re looking at 1ft and less. There’s a gap from around Monday the 10th through to the 16th where there is really nothing to ride. The energy just flatlines. There’s a small bump of 4ft from the south on the 12th, but that’s with a strong offshore wind and only 5-6 second period – junk. The 15th has a light offshore but the swell is only 2-2ft, so it’s tiny.

So the long-range stuff beyond Friday is all about promise, not power. The window of opportunity is really just Friday the 7th – keep that morning free. Friday morning is the standout: 5ft from the SSE with a light cross-off wind and moderate energy – clean and lined up. Friday afternoon is also decent, but the swell is smaller. After that, it fades away. Honestly, for a stretch this long, you’ve got to take what you can get. And this week, that’s not much.

Rusty.

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