The Peak Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about The Peak.

The coming run is a real mixed bag with some mellow windows and some wild, blown-out stuff in between. We start off with a bit of a dud on Saturday the 12th—there’s a 7 ft west swell running at 11 seconds, but that cross-shore wind in the morning and cross-on in the arvo have it lumpy and choppy. The combined swell energy is sitting at 1126 (moderate), but honestly, it’s not worth paddling out for. Sunday morning the 13th is a different story: the swell drops to a cleaner 4 ft from the west-northwest at 11 seconds, and with a light offshore SSE breeze at only 3 mph, it’s clean. Not big, but it’s the first actual surfable moment. The energy’s light at 280 (weak to moderate), but it’s a good time for a longboard or a funboard if you just want to get wet without fighting the wind. By Sunday arvo the swell fades to 3 ft, still rideable but ordinary.

Then there’s a real lull. Monday the 14th drops to a pathetic 1 ft, and through to Thursday the 17th it’s a write-off—wind onshore or cross-on, bumping up the chop, and that energy climbs to 2511 (strong) by Thursday arvo with 10 ft west-northwest swell, but it’s blown out and messy. Friday the 18th and Saturday the 19th stay marginal too—plenty of swell (7 ft to 10 ft) but the wind is cross or cross-on, so only the most desperate would bother.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Sunday the 20th morning swings back—fresh SSE offshore at 19 mph, a clean 6 ft west-northwest swell at 13 seconds, and the energy is 1157 (moderate). That’s a proper session for anyone who can handle a bit of wind. But the real standouts are Monday the 21st and Tuesday the 22nd. Monday morning: 6 ft west-northwest swell with a 10-second period, light SSE offshore at 3 mph, clean—energy at 684 (moderate), and it says “expect very good surf conditions.” Monday arvo stays clean with a 6 ft swell and a light SE offshore. Then Tuesday morning the 22nd is the pick of the whole run: 5 ft west-northwest swell at 12 seconds, glassy—NNW wind at 3 mph, completely still, energy 633 (moderate). Tuesday arvo is also glassy at 4 ft. That’s your best two days: the 21st and 22nd. The water temp is 61° with a 4° anomaly, so a touch warmer than usual for this time of year.

Wednesday the 23rd drops way off—2 ft and not worth a look. Thursday the 24th has a small window in the morning: 4 ft west swell at 11 seconds with a gentle SSE offshore, clean, energy 405 (moderate), but it’s a short-lived glimpse before the wind gets nasty. Friday the 25th is tiny again. Then we get one final, very promising spike from the long range: Saturday the 26th morning delivers a 6 ft west-northwest swell with a 15-second period—that’s a proper long-period groundswell, excellent shape, but it’ll be best at a point or reef because at a beach break it can straighten up. The energy is 1358 (strong), wind is light SSE cross-off, clean, and it’s touted as “excellent surf conditions for experienced surfers.” That’s a real standout, but remember it’s nearly two weeks out, so call it promising. Saturday arvo stays clean at 6 ft with a 15-second period, and by Sunday the 27th the swell pumps to 10 ft at 14 seconds, but the wind picks up strongly—that morning has a fresh cross-off at 22 mph, clean but a handful, and by arvo it’s a complete mess with 25 mph cross-shore wind. That 10 ft is only for experts, if anyone.

Bottom line: the real sweet spots are Sunday the 13th morning for a small clean wave, then Monday the 21st and Tuesday the 22nd for the best combo of size, period, and glassy conditions. Way out at Saturday the 26th morning, there’s a potentially epic long-period swell if the forecast holds. The crowd at the Peak can be around sometimes, so Monday or Tuesday might be quieter mid-week. Don’t bother with the blown-out middle days unless you’ve got a kite—this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Stay frothy,
Rusty

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