Dunedin - St Clair Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here, looking at what we've got for Dunedin. It's a bit of a slow start, with only small, weak swell and ordinary conditions for the first week or so. Keep the powder dry for now, because there is a standout window that's worth getting excited about.

The water temp's sitting at 51°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year (anomaly of 3°F). That's notable, a bit of comfort for the wait.

Let's get into it. The first week is mostly a bust. Friday the 3rd, we're looking at knee-high dribble, 1ft, and while the morning is clean with a light offshore from the NNW, the swell's weak with combined energy sitting at just 35. It's not worth paddling out for the size. Saturday and Sunday are similar – tiny, messy, and from Sunday the wind swings onshore. Monday the 6th sees the energy jump to a strong 1375 combined energy, but with 4ft of SSW swell it's actually pretty raw and choppy, with a moderate cross-onshore wind. Not the kind of day you want to be out at St Clair.

Things start to look up on Friday the 10th. This is the real standout. We've got 6ft of east swell, period a clean 10 seconds, and combined energy is pumping at 1521. The morning is glassy with a light offshore from the north. That's proper surf – head-high plus, clean, and punchy. This is going to be a cracker for experienced surfers; it's a bit much for beginners at that size. Crowds can show up here sometimes, but on a day like this, you'll want to be out there early. The Saturday morning the 11th is still solid at 5ft and clean with a light cross-off, but the afternoon gets ruined by a shift.

After that, we settle back into smaller, cleaner conditions. Sunday the 12th has a nice 3ft east swell with a light offshore from the NNW – a great one for the intermediate crew to get a clean wave. Monday the 13th offers glassy 2ft SSW groundswell in the afternoon, just a small, clean day. Tuesday the 14th keeps the glassy theme going with 3ft of ESE swell.

Looking further out, Wednesday the 15th morning has some nice potential with 2ft of S swell but a 19-second period – that's a long, clean groundswell, best caught on the point rather than the beach. It'll offer some well-shaped, walled-up waves for the patient surfer. And then Saturday the 18th, at the end of the run, we've got 5ft of S swell, clean with a light cross-off from the WNW. That's a very promising call for two weeks out, but it's still a bit of a long-range promise, so keep an eye on it.

In short: wait for next Friday the 10th. That's your winner. The few days after that offer clean but smaller options, and the long-range on the 18th looks like a solid bet if it holds.

Rusty.

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