Spring Lake Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Lookin’ at Spring Lake over the next couple weeks, I gotta be straight with ya – it’s a bit of a slow burner. The first week and a half is mostly flat and weedy, but there’s a proper pulse comin’ in the second week that’ll get the heart goin’ if you’re patient. Let’s break it down.

Right now, we’ve got nothin’ worth paddlin’ out for. Saturday 12th is a write-off – tiny 1 foot SE slop with a choppy cross-onshore breeze. Sunday 13th morning gives us a brief window of 3 feet southerly swell, short 5-second period, but with a gentle offshore from the WNW it’ll be clean. It’s surfable but ordinary – worth a quick splash if you’re desperate. After that, it’s back to scraps: 1 feet to 2 feet for the rest of Sunday through Monday, and then a long stretch of poor quality 2 feet to 4 feet wind-affected junk from the east from Tuesday 16th right through to Monday 21st. That whole run is just flat to messy – not your friend.

Now, things start to shift around Tuesday 22nd September. We get a jump to 8 feet from the east with a 8-second period, but the wind is cross-shore or cross-onshore from the south, and the water looks lumpy. It’s marginal – the combined swell energy is 688, so there’s moderate grunt there, but the conditions are rough. Wednesday 23rd morning is the first real standout: 7 feet east swell with a clean offshore from the west. The combined energy is 655, moderate, but the wind is gentle and off – that’ll peel nicely for intermediates. Watch out Wednesday arvo though – the wind cranks up to 19 mph from the WSW and the swell pushes 8 feet, which is gettin’ heavy and messy.

The big dog of the forecast lands on Thursday 24th September. 10 feet east swell with a 10-second period, clean offshore winds from the north at 25 mph. The combined energy blows up to 1394 – that’s strong wave energy. But listen, this is too big for Spring Lake. It’s a sandbar system, and that much east groundswell will just close out and be dangerous. This one’s for experts only, and even then, it’s a maybe – the file flags it as too big for the break. Friday 25th is still solid with 8 feet east swell but now it’s cross-onshore and messy, not worth it.

The tail end of the window, Saturday 26th morning, gives us a clean glassy 4 feet east-southeast swell with a 9-second period. Combined energy is 274, moderate, and it’ll be clean as a whistle with no wind. That’s a nice fun-sized wave for all skill levels. Sunday 27th drops back to 3 feet – surfable but nothin’ special.

Overall, the best bet on offer is Wednesday 23rd September morning – 7 feet east swell with glassy offshore wind, clean lines for the sandbar. If you’re keen on somethin’ small and clean, Saturday 26th September morning with 4 feet and glassy conditions is a close second for a cruisy session. The water temp is 74° with a 5° anomaly – that’s much warmer than normal, so you won’t need a thick wetsuit. Crowds at Spring Lake are sometimes an issue, especially on those cleaner days, so get in early.

There’s a big gap of weak surf from Monday 16th through Monday 22nd – nearly a week of nothin’ worth your time. But the pulse that follows is worth waitin’ for, though that Thursday overshoots the break’s limits. Keep an eye on the 23rd.

Rusty.

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