The Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, it’s Rusty here.

Look, the next couple of weeks are a bit of a mixed bag. We’ve got a solid run of groundswell coming through, but the wind is going to be the story for a lot of it. We’re looking at a stretch where you’ll need to pick your moment, because there’s plenty of juice in the water, but it’s not always going to be clean.

The Island (your spot) is a consistent, exposed reef break, and it’s going to be on the receiving end of a strong, long-period SW groundswell for the first few days. The energy is proper, with combined swell energy values in the thousands—around 3859 on Monday morning—so there’s serious power in the water. But it’s all for nothing if the wind’s howling. Monday and Tuesday are looking pretty average, with fresh to strong cross-onshore breezes making things lumpy and messy. The wave heights are around 8ft, which is pushing it for most, and with that short-period chop on top, it’s not going to be a fun paddle. This is more of a "watch it from the sand" situation.

The mid-week clears up a bit. Wednesday is still a bit bumpy, but Thursday morning sees the wind drop right out. It’s glassy, and the swell is still a solid 8ft with a 17-second period. That’s a serious groundswell, and with the glassy conditions, The Island is going to be offering up some proper, bowling reef waves. The combined energy is still very strong at 3232. This is the standout window for the first week. It’s big, it’s powerful, and it’s clean—definitely for experienced surfers only. The water temp is about average for the time of year, so nothing wild there.

The weekend sees the swell ease a touch, but the wind swings offshore and cross-offshore, which is a huge plus. Saturday morning looks clean with 6ft of SW swell, and there’s a chance of a good one. The energy is still moderate, around 1784. Sunday drops a bit more, down to 5ft, but it’s still clean. These are much more manageable waves, still with some punch.

Then we hit a bit of a lull. Monday and Tuesday of the following week see the swell drop right out, down to around 3-4ft. The wind is light and offshore, so it’ll be small but clean. If you’re a longboarder or just want a fun, easy session, Tuesday morning with that 19-second period and light offshore breeze might be your best bet. It’s tiny, but it could be fun.

The end of the run, from around the 20th, gets a bit tricky. The swell builds back up to 8ft, but the wind turns cross-shore and gets fresh, making it lumpy and hard work. The last few days of the window are pretty much a write-off, with strong winds and rain. The Island is going to be blown out and messy. This setup looks more interesting for the kite-surfing crew than for paddle surfing.

The real highlight is Thursday morning, the 14th. That’s the day to be out there—solid, powerful SW groundswell, glassy conditions, and a consistent reef. Mark it down. The following Saturday morning is a good backup, but Thursday is the one.

Rusty.

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