
Surf Forecasts:
The Island surf forecast from 5 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 6 Aug, 6PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 16s period, SW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 11 Aug, 9PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 21s period, SW swell with 6,723 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 6 Aug, 9AM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 16s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Island this week:
The surf forecast for The Island over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 06) at 9AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.2m and 16s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 4s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Island in the next 16 days are 3.0m 21s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 11) at 9PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 4s period and expected on Friday (Aug 07) at 6AM.
| Wave Type | Time (ACST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 9AM (Thu 6th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 16s |
| Best Surf | 6PM (Thu 6th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 9PM (Tue 11th Aug) | 10ft (3.0m) 21s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Island over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here again. Let’s run through what’s happening at The Island, this time in feet and miles per hour. It’s a long look ahead, so remember that for anything in the second week, it’s promising but less certain. We start right off the bat this Thursday morning, August 6th, with something clean and solid.
The Island (reef) is your target. The whole 16-day window is riding on a long-period SW groundswell, with periods mostly between 15 and 18 seconds. That means the waves have real grunt and shape, but a reef exposure like this handles that long period better than a beach break. The water temp is 59°, which is about what you expect for this time of year—no big anomaly.
Let’s break it down. Thursday morning, August 6th, is your main window. We’ve got a clean 4 ft SW swell with a 16-second period, and the wind is light and cross-off from the SSE at just over 6 mph. That makes for glassy, clean faces. The combined energy is a moderate 922—nothing huge, but it’s clean and walled. This is a standout, hands down.
Thursday afternoon sees the swell nudge up to 5 ft, and the energy climbs to 1230, but the wind goes southerly and cross-shore, bringing a little texture to the surface. You get more size, but you lose that mirror finish.
Friday the 7th has the swell hitting 6 ft in the morning with 1711 energy, but a strong northerly wind at 25 mph turns the wave faces into a messy cross-chop. Skip it. Friday afternoon is still cross and grotty.
The weekend is a write-off for surfing. Saturday the 8th holds near 6 ft, but the wind is cross-onshore, making it choppy. Then Sunday the 9th gets ugly—the swell jumps to 10 ft from the WSW with near-gale winds hitting 34 mph. That’s 4004 energy behind a total blown-out mess. That wave is just a windblown wall. For paddle surfing it’s a no-go; honestly, that looks more interesting for kite surfing than a surfboard.
Monday the 10th keeps the pain going with 8 ft waves but the wind is fresh onshore. Tuesday the 11th drops to 5 ft but the wind is still howling near 25 mph. Wednesday the 12th sees a massive 10 ft swell with 5139 energy, and it’s onshore and lumpy. Experts only, and even they wouldn’t love it.
Thursday the 13th offers a small reprieve—the wind drops to a light breeze from the SW on a 8 ft swell, but it’s still cross-onshore. It’s ridable, but marginal. That trend holds through Friday and Saturday the 14th and 15th with moderate chop.
Now for the good news. Look ahead to Sunday morning, August 16th. The swell drops to a fun 4 ft from the SW, still with a 15-second period. The wind goes light and cross-off from the ENE at just over 6 mph, cleaning the wave faces right up. This is your second standout of the whole run. The energy is a gentle 777, so it’s a playful size, but it will be clean and rippable on the reef.
After that, the final few days (August 17th to 21st) turn windy again. The swell jumps between 4 ft and 8 ft, but the wind is mostly cross or cross-onshore from the north or south, keeping the surf lumpy and uninviting.
Final call: Hit it Thursday morning, August 6th, for the cleanest early session, and circle Sunday morning, August 16th, for another sweet, glassy window. The rest of the period has size but gets thrashed by wind.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 9mm), mostly falling on Sat night. Very mild (max 19°C on Fri afternoon, min 11°C on Sat night). Winds increasing (light winds from the S on Thu morning, near gales from the WSW by Sat night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 13mm), heaviest on Mon morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Tue morning, min 12°C on Sun morning). Winds decreasing (near gales from the SW on Sun morning, light winds from the NW by Mon afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 6 | Friday 7 | Saturday 8 | Sunday 9 | Monday 10 | Tuesday 11 | Wednesday 12 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | WSW 16 | SW 13 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | WSW 10 | SW 19 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 17 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
728 | 1225 | 1904 | 1651 | 1663 | 1256 | 1412 | 1254 | 821 | 4004 | 2955 | 4911 | 3950 | 2790 | 1716 | 776 | 1397 | 6036 | 5139 | 4742 | 4262 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross |
High Tide | 11:43PM0.00m | 1:32AM0.00m | 3:11AM0.00m | 4:48AM0.00m | 6:33AM0.00m | 8:31AM0.00m | |||||||||||||||
Low Tide | 10:45AM-0.00m | 12:40PM-0.00m | 2:23PM-0.00m | 4:00PM-0.00m | 5:39PM-0.00m | 7:32PM-0.00m | 9:31PM-0.00m | ||||||||||||||
7:20 | — | — | 7:18 | — | — | 7:18 | — | — | 7:18 | — | — | 7:16 | — | — | 7:16 | — | — | 7:15 | — | — | |
— | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:59 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:01 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | 3 | 1 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 14 | 14 | 15 | 18 | 19 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
Feels °C | 12 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 14 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 9 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | — | — | — | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | S 14 | — | — | — | SSE 18 |
728 | 1225 | 1904 | 1651 | 1663 | 1256 | 1412 | 1254 | 821 | — | — | — | 3950 | 2790 | 1716 | 776 | 4 | — | — | — | 31 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 4 | S 16 | S 17 | S 16 | S 18 | S 17 | S 16 | S 16 | S 15 | — | — | — | S 18 | S 17 | S 16 | S 15 | — | — | — | — | — |
8 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | — | — | — | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
186 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | N 5 | NNW 4 | NNW 4 | — | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | WSW 16 | SW 13 | SW 18 | — | WNW 5 | NNW 5 | NW 6 | WSW 10 | SW 19 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 17 |
— | — | — | 55 | 18 | 24 | — | 10 | 32 | 4004 | 2955 | 4911 | — | 44 | 48 | 155 | 1397 | 6036 | 5139 | 4742 | 4262 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 154 | 13 | 249 | 13 | 412 | 412 | 412 | 429 | 824 | 939 | 1286 | 891 | 356 | 495 | 1073 | 1073 | 495 | 1075 | 1428 | 1089 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Eyre Peninsula | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the The Island Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Island provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Island can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Island surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Island) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Island may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Are you planning a holiday in Eyre Peninsula? If you are looking for accommodation near The Island, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Eyre Peninsula, consider staying in Thevenard which is 111 km (69 miles) away.











