Thirroul Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty. Let’s have a look at what’s on offer for our stretch of coast at Thirroul. The forecast shows a bit of a mixed bag over the coming sixteen days, with some clean windows but also some serious size and wind to deal with.

We start off with Saturday the 12th. It’s not a total write-off. The morning brings a clean 3ft swell from the SSE with a light cross-offshore breeze from the north. The energy is moderate, sitting at 348. It’s not pumping, but it’s rideable and clean. The water’s sitting at 64°, which is about average for the time of year. Come Saturday afternoon, the wind swings NE and picks up, turning things messy. Sunday is a write-off with cross-shore winds and weak, short-period swell.

Monday the 14th has a chance in the morning again – a clean 4ft from the NE with a light cross-off breeze. Energy is moderate at 261, but the period is short at 7 seconds, so it’ll be a bit weak and soft. Afternoon goes lumpy.

Then we hit a big gap. Tuesday through to Wednesday the 16th gets ugly. There’s a pulse of heavy south swell arriving on Wednesday the 16th. We’re looking at 10ft on the morning, jumping to 12ft in the afternoon, with a period of 9 to 10 seconds. Energy goes through the roof – 1539 on Wednesday morning, peaking at 2451 in the afternoon. That’s very strong. But the wind is howling from the SSW and S at 18 to 22 mph, creating a lumpy cross-shore chop. This is big, powerful, and messy. Only for experienced surfers, and even then, it’s not going to be pretty. The same story continues into Thursday the 17th with dropping but still substantial 8ft to 10ft swell and cross-to onshore winds. This stretch is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

It’s not all bad news. Friday the 18th of September shapes up as the standout of the entire outlook. The morning is glassy – zero wind, dead calm. There’s a 5ft groundswell from the ESE with a period of 10 seconds. Energy is still solid at 613. Clean, glassy conditions on a moderate, long-period swell – that’s about as good as it gets here. The wave quality will be well-shaped and the paddling out will be easier between sets. Crowds are sometimes an issue at Thirroul, so factor that in. Saturday the 19th morning also offers a very good window with clean 4ft swell from the ESE and glassy conditions again. Energy is 440.

After that, the surf really tapers off. Sunday the 20th has tiny, weak 1ft to 2ft waves with clean wind, but it’s not worth getting wet for. There’s a long stretch of poor conditions with small, short-period swell and onshore winds through Monday the 21st.

Then, another big pulse arrives on Tuesday the 22nd of September. We’re looking at 12ft from the SSE in the morning with a period of 10 seconds, and energy through the roof at 2324. The wind is cross-shore from the south at 12 mph. It’s big, powerful, and lumpy. Again, this is expert-only territory, and the clean-up is not on offer.

The final few days from Wednesday the 23rd onwards are poor to ordinary. There’s a small, clean window on Thursday the 24th with 2ft to 2ft swell and offshore winds, but it’s tiny.

In short, the best bet by far is the Friday the 18th morning – glassy, clean, and a solid 5ft ESE groundswell. Saturday the 19th morning is your backup. The rest of the period is either too big and windy, or too small.

Stay safe, and read the conditions.

Rusty.

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