The Pass Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's break down what's cooking at The Pass.

The next week or so is pretty ho-hum, nothing to write home about until we get into the second week. There's a solid run of better conditions coming, but it's a long wait.

Friday morning the 28th starts off tiny with 1ft surf from the southeast, with a very long 15-second period. The water's at 69°, which is about normal for this time of year. The cross-off wind will keep it clean, but it's barely a ripple. The real standout on Friday is the afternoon. The swell jumps to 5ft from the south-southeast, period drops to a still solid 12 seconds, and we get offshore winds. The combined energy hits a moderate 676, and it's looking like very good surf.

Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th see the swell hanging around 4ft to 6ft from the south-southeast, but the winds are cross-off and a bit stronger. The surf quality is marginal, with combined energy in the 400 to 634 range. It's surfable, but it's not the pick of the week.

Monday the 31st is more of the same, with 5ft to 6ft swell but the period drops to a short 7 seconds on the afternoon, making for weaker, messier waves. The energy is moderate but the quality is down.

We then hit a proper flat spell. From Tuesday the 1st of September through to Monday the 7th, the surf is mostly poor. There's a tiny window on Wednesday the 2nd morning with glassy conditions and a 3ft south-southeast swell, but it's ordinary. The rest of that stretch is plagued by onshore and cross-onshore winds, short periods, and low energy. It's a real drought.

But hold onto your board, because things change in a big way. The real highlight of the entire forecast is the window from Tuesday the 8th of September through to Thursday the 10th. This is where the magic happens. Tuesday afternoon sees a solid 7ft south-southeast groundswell with a very long 15-second period and clean offshore winds. The combined energy is a massive 1969 – that's strong to very strong wave energy. This is excellent surf, but at 7ft, it's in the expert zone. Wednesday the 9th is nearly as good, with 7ft and 6ft from the same direction, periods still very long at 14 and 13 seconds, and offshore winds. The energy is still very high (1591 and 1461). Thursday the 10th keeps the run going with 6ft and 6ft, periods around 12 to 13 seconds, and glassy offshore winds.

So, the absolute standout is the run from Tuesday the 8th of September afternoon through to Thursday the 10th. The Pass (Tahiti) will be firing with consistent, powerful groundswell and clean offshore winds. Just be aware that a long-period swell like this (over 15 seconds) can sometimes break a bit too straight at a beach break, but for a point break like The Pass, it's a dream. The crowds are likely to be there, as it's a spot that "often" gets busy.

The surf fades a bit after that, with Friday the 11th and Saturday the 12th still offering clean, surfable waves from the south-southeast, but smaller at 4ft down to 2ft.

Overall, a slow start and a long wait, but a proper pulse of high-quality, powerful swell arrives in the second week. Keep your eyes on that window from the 8th to the 10th.

Rusty

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