The Trough Surf Break

Lat Long: 35.23° S 138.47° E

The Trough Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 2 am 08 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's The Trough sea temperature is
13.9° C
0.7° 

The Trough surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


The Trough surf forecast from 8 Aug 2026:

  • Most powerful swell: Wednesday 12 Aug, 12PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 8s period, WSW swell with 881 kJ wave energy.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Trough this week:

The most powerful waves expected at The Trough in the next 16 days are 3.0m 8s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 12) at 12PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.6m 5s period and expected on Sunday (Aug 09) at 9PM.

Wave TypeTime (ACST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+)--
Best Surf--
Most Powerful12PM (Wed 12th Aug)10ft (3.0m) 8s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Trough over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright, Rusty here. Let's get into what's on offer at The Trough.

To be straight with you, this 16-day stretch is looking pretty bleak. There’s barely a window worth paddling out for. The water’s running about 57° right now, which is just about average for this time of year.

The first half-decent chance to get wet doesn’t come until Thursday, August 20th. The morning shows a 3ft swell from the WSW, with a period of about 5 seconds. The combined energy is weak (67), but the wind is glassy, so it’ll be clean. It’s surfable, but only just. That’s the only session in the whole run that gets a thumbs up. The afternoon fades fast.

Before that, it’s a rough stretch. On Wednesday, August 12th, the swell picks up to 8ft from the W, with combined energy hitting 632. That’s a lot of power, but the onshore wind is strong, making it a total mess. The Trough is a beach and reef setup, so with that much swell and that wind, it’s more of a kite-surfing show than a paddle-surfing one.

After the 20th, it’s back to tiny, weak junk, with periods often under 8 seconds, all the way to the 23rd. The 23rd shows a little bump—4ft from the north—but the cross-shore wind chops it up again.

So, if you’re desperate, Thursday morning the 20th is your only real option. It’s not much, but it’s the best of a bad lot. Keep an eye on it, though—forecasts shift.

Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Heavy rain (total 21mm), heaviest during Sat night. Very mild (max 15°C on Sat afternoon, min 10°C on Sun afternoon). Mainly strong winds.

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Light rain (total 9mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Very mild (max 14°C on Tue afternoon, min 10°C on Tue night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the WNW on Wed morning, light winds from the W by Thu night).

Saturday
8
Sunday
9
Monday
10
Tuesday
11
Wednesday
12
Thursday
13
Friday
14
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.8
N
4
0.9
N
4
1
N
5
1.2
NNW
5
1.3
NNW
5
0.6
WSW
4
1.8
SW
6
0.9
WSW
5
0.7
W
4
1.4
NW
5
1.3
NNW
5
2.5
W
7
2.5
W
7
2.4
WSW
8
1.2
WSW
6
0.8
WSW
5
0.7
W
5
0.6
W
5
0.3
WSW
8
0.2
WSW
8
0.4
WSW
4
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
19
27
46
78
92
11
261
50
17
99
94
589
632
637
84
32
23
17
14
7
7
Wind (km/h)
25
N
30
N
20
NNE
25
N
35
NNW
30
SW
30
WSW
25
WSW
25
NW
40
NNW
40
N
40
WSW
45
WNW
30
WSW
20
WSW
20
W
20
W
15
WNW
10
WSW
15
W
5
SSW
Wind State
cross-off
cross
cross-off
cross
cross-on
cross-on
cross-on
on
cross-on
cross
cross
on
on
cross-on
on
on
on
on
cross-on
on
cross
High Tide
1:48PM1.38m
7:08AM1.02m
3:10PM1.59m
5:27AM1.02m
3:50PM1.76m
5:11AM1.12m
4:22PM1.88m
5:13AM1.26m
4:49PM1.93m
5:24AM1.43m
5:14PM1.93m
Low Tide
11:36PM0.42m
10:57PM0.29m
7:56AM1.02m
10:56PM0.18m
9:20AM0.81m
11:05PM0.11m
9:57AM0.60m
11:16PM0.07m
10:29AM0.41m
11:27PM0.05m
10:59AM0.27m
11:39PM0.03m
cloud
part cloud
mod rain
light rain
light rain
light rain
cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
light rain
rain showers
rain showers
clear
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:05
7:03
7:03
7:01
7:01
7:00
6:58
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:37
5:38
5:39
5:39
5:40
5:42
5:43
 mm
10
1
5
5
2
5
2
Temp °C
14
15
13
14
11
13
12
12
13
13
14
12
13
14
13
14
14
14
14
14
13
Feels °C
9
9
8
10
4
7
6
7
6
5
5
4
5
7
10
10
10
11
12
11
10
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
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Quick surf report for The Trough:

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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 Trough 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 Trough Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for The Trough provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Trough can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Trough 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 Trough) 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 Trough 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 Trough is 11 km (7 miles) from the very large city of Morphett Vale. If you plan a holiday in Adelaide, look for hotels and other accommodation in Morphett Vale. Morphett Vale has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as cheap car hire and transport links.

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