Sponge bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for Sponge Bay.

Honestly, the next week and a half is pretty grim. There’s a lot of swell but the wind is just wrecking it, and when the wind does ease off, the swell disappears. The water temperature is sitting at 55°, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year, so that’s a bit of a buzzkill for the first session you might consider.

It kicks off with some buzz on Sunday the 16th, but don’t get excited. Sponge Bay is a beach and reef setup, and while there’s a 4ft swell from the east with a short period of 8 seconds, the wind is a fresh cross-onshore, making it lumpy and poor. The combined energy is only moderate (439), so nothing to write home about.

Sunday afternoon and all of Monday (the 17th) through to Wednesday (the 19th) are a write-off. The swell builds to 12ft and even 15ft, but strong to near-gale onshore winds from the south and southwest are going to make it a dangerous, messy washing machine. The combined energy hits very strong levels (up to 8355), but that’s just for the kite surfers – not for paddle surfing.

Thursday morning the 20th is the first real standout. The wind drops to a moderate cross-onshore from the WSW (12 mph), and you’ve got a solid 10ft swell from the SSW with a nice 13-second period. The energy is still very strong (3859). The comment says wind and tide are favorable, but the swell is too big for this break. That’s expert territory only; beginners should stay well clear. The swell direction from the SSW is a reasonable match for the optimum (SSE), but at that size, it’s going to be heavy.

After that, things mellow out. Friday the 21st and Saturday the 22nd see tiny waves (2ft to 3ft) but the wind finally turns good. Friday morning has a light cross-offshore from the NW, giving you clean 3ft waves from the ESE (period 8 seconds, energy weak at 239). Then Saturday afternoon the 22nd is glassy – a light easterly 3 mph – with a knee-high 2ft SSE swell, clean and surfable but very ordinary. The period jumps to 16 seconds on the Friday afternoon, but it’s tiny.

There’s then a gap from Sunday the 23rd through to Tuesday the 25th, with surf dropping to 0.5ft to 2ft. Not worth paddling out for unless you’ve got a longboard and no expectations.

The next real shot is Wednesday morning the 26th. Now this is the best of the whole 16 days. You’ve got 5ft of swell from the south, period only 8 seconds, but the wind is a gentle offshore from the NNW at 9 mph, making for clean conditions. The combined energy is moderate (454). It’s a proper, surfable, clean wave. This is the one to circle on your calendar.

After that, Thursday the 27th and Friday the 28th get messy again with strong cross-onshore winds and poor conditions, before a final marginal window on Saturday the 29th. That day shows a 5ft south swell with a short 6-second period, clean conditions but only a moderate rating.

So, if I had to pick the standout, it’s Wednesday the 26th August, early morning. Clean offshore wind, chest-to-head-high swell from the south. Nothing huge, but it’ll be the best quality you’ll see in this whole two-week stretch.

Stay patient, keep an eye on the forecasts, because when it goes clean, Sponge Bay can be fun.

Rusty.

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