Stent Road Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s coming down the pipe for Stent Road. This is a real tricky stretch we’re looking at, and I’ve got to be straight with you – the next few weeks are not going to be kind to us.

The issue from the get-go is that the wind is just relentless. Almost the entire 16-day window is plagued by strong cross-onshore or onshore winds, which is a total killer for this exposed reef and point setup. The swell is actually there, and it’s sizeable, but the quality is just not there.

We start on Sunday the 30th of August. The water is sitting at 57°F, which is about average for this time of year. But the wind is a fresh 22 mph cross-onshore, tearing up a 12 ft swell from the WSW. The combined energy is solid (1446), but it’s all for nothing. The same story rolls into Monday the 31st, with a 15 ft to 16 ft swell from the WSW, but the wind is still howling. The energy is massive (5414 and 7161), but it’s just a mess. This is expert territory only, and even then, it’s not fun.

We go through the first week of September with the same pattern. Big, powerful WSW groundswells with periods between 12 and 15 seconds, generating moderate to strong wave energy, but the wind never lets up. The period gets long, which is good for shape at a point break like this, but with the wind, it’s a lost cause. The only flicker of hope comes late on Thursday the 3rd of September afternoon, when the wind drops to a light 6 mph onshore. The swell is 10 ft from the W with a 10-second period, and the energy is 2191. The forecast calls it “marginal,” which is the best we get all week. It’s a small window, but that might be the only paddleable moment in the first week.

Then we hit a little gap. The first real “standout” – and I use that term loosely – appears on Sunday the 6th of September. The morning sees a 12 ft swell from the W with a very long 16-second period, and the energy is strong (6472). The wind is a moderate 16 mph cross-shore from the NNW. It’s still not clean, but it’s the best wind direction we’ve seen. This is a long-period groundswell, which at Stent Road’s reef and point setup should actually produce some proper lines. It’s still a moderate cross-chop, but for an advanced surfer, this is the pick of the entire forecast. The afternoon gets messier with a fresher breeze, so the morning window is the one to aim for.

After that, we slide back into the poor conditions. The second week sees more of the same: big swells, strong winds. By the 10th and 11th of September, we’re looking at 13 ft to 16 ft swells with insane energy levels (8851 and 7806), but the wind is a strong cross-onshore, making it a total write-off. The 12th of September is a full-on near-gale event. That’s not surf, that’s survival.

The final days taper off in size, but the wind keeps the quality poor. The 5 ft swell on the 13th with a 19-second period is a tease, but the cross-onshore wind ruins it.

Look, if you’re a local who knows Stent Road, you know this spot needs specific conditions. Right now, the only window that looks even slightly promising is the morning of Sunday the 6th of September. The swell is big, the period is dreamy, and the wind is almost cross-shore. It’s not perfect, but it’s the best we’re going to get. For the rest of it, it’s a case of watching the charts and hoping the wind models change. This is a tough run, but it won’t last forever.

Rusty.

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