The Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab your board. The next couple of weeks at The Island are a mixed bag, but there's some proper grunt on the way if you're willing to be patient. The week starts pretty average, but it builds into some excellent, clean conditions for the experienced crew, especially towards the end of the first week and into the second.

We've got a solid run of SW groundswell hitting this exposed reef break. Right now, Tuesday the 25th of August morning is a bit of a write-off—cross-shore wind, lumpy 7ft swell (combined energy of 2009), and it's pretty messy. It's a pass for me. The afternoon cleans up a touch but is still cross-onshore and choppy. Not worth the paddle.

Wednesday the 26th of August morning gets interesting. It drops to 4ft SW, but the wind swings NNE and goes cross-offshore, cleaning it right up. The combined energy is moderate at 556, but it feels like a proper sneaky session. That's a nice window for the advanced surfers. The afternoon weakens and gets a little bumpy.

The real stand-out is Friday the 28th of August afternoon. We've got a clean 5ft SW swell with a proper 16-second period, cross-offshore breeze from the NE, light wind, and the combined energy is sitting at 1106. The forecast calls it excellent for experienced surfers, and I’m backing that. That’s the session to aim for. You'll be trading waves with a few others, as crowds are sometimes around, but for a reef wave like The Island, that quality is worth the company.

Saturday the 29th of August morning is clean with an offshore ENE breeze, but it's smaller at 4ft. Sunday the 30th of August has a real standout morning—glassy offshore E wind, a long period 20-second swell at 2ft, combined energy of 521. It's small but straight as a die. The afternoon jumps to 5ft with a long 19-second period, but the wind goes cross-off.

Monday the 31st of August morning keeps it going with 6ft SW and a cross-offshore breeze, but the water temp is sitting at 59°, which is just about average for this time of year. Not warm, but not a shocker.

Then the first few days of September get a bit windy and messy. Not much to write home about until Thursday the 3rd of September morning and afternoon, which both see clean, cross-offshore conditions on a building 5-6ft SW swell. The combined energy is climbing well (1236-1785). Solid, powerful, clean groundswell.

The absolute pick of the entire outlook is Saturday the 5th of September morning. Glassy as a mirror, a light WNW breeze, 4ft SW swell with a 14-second period, and the combined energy is a punchy 1283. The forecast calls it excellent for experienced surfers. It's over a week away, so keep an eye on it, but if it holds, it’s a real beauty. The afternoon gets a bit blown out with onshore wind and a bigger 7ft swell.

There's another solid window on Tuesday the 8th of September morning—a tiny 3ft swell but with a very long 20-second period, glassy conditions, and combined energy of 1071. That's a sneaky, clean long-period groundswell that'll peel perfectly down the reef, though it might be a bit sleepy between sets.

Wednesday the 9th of September gets a big dose of swell (7ft and 7ft) but the wind is howling at 25-28 mph. It's cross-offshore, so some spots will be howling, but it's going to be a battle. The combined energy is massive (2887), but only the experts with a death wish and a step-up will be out there. For most, that's a kitesurfer's dream, not a paddle surfer's.

So, in short: Friday 28th August afternoon and Saturday 5th September morning are your standout sessions. Don't sleep on Wednesday 26th morning or Tuesday 8th morning either. The rest is either a bit too windy, too small, or too big and wild.

Rusty.

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