Stela Maris Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, I'm Rusty. Let's have a look at what Stela Maris has cookin' for us over the next couple of weeks.

First up, the water temp's sittin' at a warm 80°, right on the money for this time of year – nothin' unusual. But mate, the surf situation? It's a tough stretch. There's nothin' worth paddlin' out for right now. Sunday the 5th is a write-off – rain showers, choppy cross-on wind, and tiny 5ft swell with short 8-second period. The next few days don't get any better. Monday the 6th through to Tuesday the 8th morning, it's all poor conditions – cross-on wind, small weak slop, and energy readings barely crackin' 200 (like 134 to 168) – it's just not worth the wax.

Now, Wednesday the 8th morning, there's a little flicker of hope. We get a brief window with light north wind blowin' cross-offshore, and a 3ft groundswell from the south with a 12-second period – that's got some push. The combined energy hits 295, which is moderate. The report says "expect good surf conditions" – so if you're keen, that Wednesday morning is the only real stand-out in the whole 16-day run. The swell's small, but it'll be clean with that offshore flow. Crowds are often here, so you might have a few mates out, but with waves this small, it won't be a zoo.

After Wednesday the 8th, it goes back to grim. Thursday the 9th through to Sunday the 13th, it's mostly onshore wind, small 4ft to 3ft swell, and energy stayin' mostly in the 200s and 300s. Monday the 13th morning has a little cross-offshore wind again with a 3ft 11-second SE swell, which gives us clean but tiny waves – surfable but ordinary. Tuesday the 14th drops right off: 2ft swell, 77 energy, and then Wednesday the 15th brings a spike to 5ft and 6ft, but it's wind-affected junk with a 6-second period – that's just wind slop, not real surf.

From Wednesday the 15th onward, the combination of low energy (mostly under 200) and onshore wind means it's a long dry spell. Even the small pulses of SE swell with 12 and 13-second periods on the 19th and 20th are ruined by onshore wind. This setup would be more interestin' for kite surfing than paddlin' – the wind's blowin' onshore, the swell's messy.

Bottom line: there's one true stand-out – Wednesday the 8th morning at Stela Maris. That's your session. The rest is a long, painful gap of no good surf, stretchin' from now all the way to at least the 13th, and then nothin' really redeemable after that. Forecasts can change, but as it stands, we're in a lean patch.

– Rusty

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