The Rock Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, I'm Rusty, and I've been staring at the charts for your area. Let's be straight up – we’ve got a long, frustrating stretch ahead of us. The only break on the radar is The Rock, and things are looking pretty grim for the next couple of weeks. There’s a solid run of days where it’s just not worth paddling out, so get ready for some time on the beach.

We’re talking about a massive gap here. From today, Tuesday the 25th of August, all the way through to the end of the month, it’s mostly poor conditions with cross-onshore winds messing it up. The wind is coming straight from the west or west-southwest at 12 to 15 mph, which just chops everything up. The swell is from the SSW, but the combined swell energy is all over the place – a moderate 791 on Tuesday morning but jumping to a strong 2300 on Thursday morning, though that doesn’t matter when the wind is on it. The water temp is 82°F, which is about average for this time of year, so you won’t need a thick suit at least. For a beginner-friendly reef break, those 3 ft to 6 ft waves are just messy, and I wouldn't bother.

There is a little glimmer late in the week. The Rock might offer something on Sunday the 30th of August. You’ll get a 4 ft to 5 ft groundswell from the SSW with a very long 18 to 19-second period. The combined energy is strong (1509 to 1748), pointing to a deep, powerful ocean. The wind switches to a cross-shore, which is better than what we’ve had, but the forecast still says *marginal*. It’s a reef break, so that long period swell could really line up and offer some nice clean lines, and it’s fairly consistent here. It might be the best of a bad bunch, but with “sometimes” crowds, you might have to share the peak if you’re lucky enough for it to come together.

After that, we slide back into the same routine. September kicks off with more strong westerly winds and choppy conditions until the 4th. The swell drops off, the period shortens, and the combined energy falls back to moderate levels like 609 on the 4th. From the 6th of September onwards, the swell is small, below 4 ft, and the energy is weak, between 255 and 627. The wind stays nasty. It’s a long, flat, blown-out period. This looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing at a spot like this. It’s a shame, but that’s the forecast.

Keep your chin up, the forecasts can always change, but this run looks locked in.

Rusty.

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