Surf Forecasts:
The Spit surf forecast from 12 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 17 Sep, 1AM (local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 11s period, SE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 17 Sep, 4AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 10s period, SSE swell with 2,239 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 17 Sep, 1AM (local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 11s period with SE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Spit this week:
The surf forecast for The Spit over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 17) at 1AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.1m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 13s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Spit in the next 16 days are 3.5m 10s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 17) at 4AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.5m 3s period and expected on Friday (Sep 18) at 1AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1AM (Thu 17th Sep) | 7ft (2.1m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 1AM (Thu 17th Sep) | 7ft (2.1m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 4AM (Thu 17th Sep) | 11ft (3.5m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Spit over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what The Spit has cookin’ for us over the next couple of weeks. To be straight with you, it’s a pretty bleak stretch for paddle surfing. We’ve got a long run of flat, weak, or messy conditions ahead, and only one day that even looks worth a mention. Hang in there, because it’s a long wait.
For the first five days, from Sunday the 13th through Thursday the 17th of September, The Spit is serving up tiny, short-period slop. Swell heights barely scrape 3 feet, the period is a miserable 6 to 10 seconds, and the wind is all over the shop—mostly cross or cross-onshore. The energy is weak, staying well under 100 for most of those sessions, so you’re looking at gutless, bumpy waves. It’s just not worth paddling out for this.
Things change a bit on the morning of Friday the 18th of September. That’s the standout—and it’s a big, powerful, and *dangerous* one. The swell jumps to a solid 8 feet from the SSE, with a moderate period of 9 seconds. The wave energy flies up to a strong 1498. That’s serious, heavy water for The Spit. The wind is a light, gentle cross-onshore from the SE, so the surface won’t be too messy, but the swell size is way too much for this spot. The forecast even says the swell is predicted to be too big for the break. This is strictly for expert chargers only; and even then, you’d want to be very, very careful. Beginners and intermediates, stay well clear. The water temp? No anomaly data here, so pretty standard for the time of year.
After that brief pulse of energy, it all fizzles out. The afternoon of the 18th drops to 4.6 feet, and the rest of the forecast period—from Saturday the 19th right through to Monday the 28th of September—is dominated by weak, short-period swells under 5 feet, mostly with onshore or cross-onshore winds. Energy levels are low, in the double digits mostly, and the surf quality is poor. It’s a long, flat, unappealing run with really nothing to recommend.
So that’s the story: one morning of heavy, expert-only power on the 18th, and the rest is a skip. Keep your gear dry for a while.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 20°C on Tue morning, min 15°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 19°C on Wed morning, min 12°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the SSE on Wed afternoon, light winds from the SSW by Fri night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | Saturday 19 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | NE 6 | ENE 6 | SE 7 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | ESE 11 | ESE 11 | SE 11 | SE 10 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 53 | 46 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 17 | 32 | 29 | 305 | 936 | 362 | 441 | 433 | 388 | 450 | 426 | 329 | 268 | 145 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-off |
High Tide | 9:43PM1.36m | 10:12AM1.40m | 10:16PM1.23m | 10:52AM1.36m | 10:50PM1.09m | 11:34AM1.31m | 11:26PM0.97m | 12:22PM1.26m | 00:11AM0.86m | 1:19PM1.21m | 1:14AM0.78m | 2:28PM1.20m | 2:47AM0.75m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 3:37PM0.20m | 3:51AM0.14m | 4:20PM0.29m | 4:22AM0.19m | 5:05PM0.38m | 4:54AM0.25m | 5:57PM0.48m | 5:30AM0.32m | 7:03PM0.55m | 6:13AM0.39m | 8:30PM0.57m | 7:11AM0.45m | 9:59PM0.53m | ||||||||
 | |  | | | | | | |  | |  | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 5:47 | — | — | 5:46 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:43 | — | — | 5:43 | — | — | 5:41 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — |
 | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — | 5:39 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 19 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 15 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 21 | 20 | 18 |
Feels °C | 14 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 7 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 10 | SE 11 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | NE 6 | ENE 6 | E 13 | NE 13 | SE 10 | NE 13 | SE 10 | SE 10 | E 14 | ESE 11 | ESE 11 | SE 11 | SE 10 |
| kJ | 17 | 4 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 17 | 32 | 29 | 4 | 7 | 362 | 7 | 433 | 388 | 4 | 426 | 329 | 268 | 145 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 13 | E 8 | SE 7 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | E 14 | — | — | E 8 | — | E 16 | — | E 12 | E 14 | E 8 | E 8 | E 8 |
| kJ | 3 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | — | — | 1 | — | 5 | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 21 | E 13 | SE 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | SE 7 | SE 7 | E 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | E 13 | S 18 | SE 16 |
| kJ | 17 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 25 | 11 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | — | — | — | — | — | NNE 4 | NW 3 | SSE 3 | SE 7 | SE 11 | SSW 3 | SE 10 | S 3 | — | SE 10 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 53 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | 1 | 5 | 305 | 936 | 3 | 441 | 6 | — | 450 | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 28 | 28 | 17 | 28 | 143 | 18 | 33 | 149 | 66 | 176 | 1391 | 22 | 143 | 348 | 22 | 28 | 28 | 0 | 4 | 288 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Gold Coast | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our The Spit surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the The Spit Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Spit provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Spit can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Spit surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Spit) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Spit may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
The Spit is 4 km (2 miles) from the city of Southport. If you plan a holiday in Gold Coast, look for hotels and other accommodation in Southport. Southport has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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