
Surf Forecasts:
Thirroul surf forecast from 5 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 7 Sep, 1AM (local time) - 8ft (2.5m), 9s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 6 Sep, 10PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 10s period, S swell with 1,884 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 5 Sep, 10PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 9s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Thirroul this week:
The surf forecast for Thirroul over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Sep 05) at 10PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Thirroul in the next 16 days are 3.0m 10s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 06) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.9m 4s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 06) at 4AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 10PM (Sat 5th Sep) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 9s |
| Best Surf | 1AM (Mon 7th Sep) | 8ft (2.5m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 10PM (Sun 6th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Thirroul over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for Thirroul. It’s a bit of a mixed bag over the next couple of weeks, with some real flashes of quality tucked in amongst some pretty ordinary spells, so you’ll need to pick your moments. The water temp is sitting at 64°, which is pretty much spot on for this time of year – nothing unusual there.
The first decent chance doesn’t come until Monday the 7th of September. The morning is the pick, with a glassy 2ft south swell pushing in with moderate energy (359). The wind is dead calm, so it’ll be clean. The period is only 9 seconds, so it’s a bit of a short-period windswell, not a deep groundswell, but for a Monday session it’ll be worth a paddle. By the afternoon, the onshore wind kicks in and it turns ordinary again.
Tuesday the 8th of September sees a jump in size, with 8ft south swell early, but a strong cross-shore wind chops it up. The energy is strong (1547), but the quality is not there. That’s more of a kite-surfing setup than a clean paddle session.
Then we hit a real standout. Friday the 11th of September morning delivers. We’ve got 6ft of south-southeast swell with a 10-second period, moderate to strong energy (720), and glassy conditions with a light northerly breeze. That’s clean, lined-up surf at a pretty consistent spot. Thirroul is a beach and reef setup, exposed to the south, and with that swell direction (SSE) it’s right in the wheelhouse. Crowds can be around sometimes, but for a Friday morning with this quality, you might find a few locals out. This is the best on offer for the whole run.
After that, the size drops away. Sunday the 13th of September morning has 3ft SSE groundswell with a long 11-second period and a light offshore wind – clean, small, and a good chance if you’re on a log. Energy is low (237), but it’s tidy.
Then there’s a quiet gap from Monday the 14th through to Tuesday the 15th – just tiny 1ft to 2ft waves, barely worth wetting a suit.
Everything changes from Wednesday the 16th of September onwards. A big pulse arrives: 10ft south swell by Wednesday morning, building to 12ft on Thursday, and peaking at 12ft to 10ft through Friday the 18th, with very strong energy readings (1927 up to 4310). This is serious size – over 8ft, so expert-only territory. The swell direction is SSE to SE, with a long period (11 to 14 seconds), which is a proper groundswell. For a beach and reef setup like Thirroul, that long-period groundswell can break a bit straight on the beach, but the reef might handle it. Thursday the 17th of September afternoon has an onshore wind, but Friday the 18th morning has a cross-offshore wind – that’s your window for clean, heavy waves if you’ve got the skills. Just be aware, around the 20th of September the cross-onshore wind chops it up again.
So, the standout is Friday the 11th of September morning at Thirroul – 6ft SSE swell, glassy, clean, and consistent. The big stuff around the 16th to 18th is for experts only. Pick your days.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Mon night. Warm (max 29°C on Sat morning, min 12°C on Sun night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the W on Sat night, calm by Mon morning). | Days 4-6 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Wed morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Tue morning, min 9°C on Wed night). Winds increasing (light winds from the NE on Tue afternoon, fresh winds from the S by Wed afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | Friday 11 | |||||||||||||||
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) | S 9 | S 10 | S 9 | SSW 6 | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 8 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | S 10 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
58 | 44 | 27 | 35 | 461 | 1083 | 355 | 329 | 671 | 879 | 421 | 343 | 243 | 620 | 1787 | 1548 | 800 | 988 | 707 | 634 | 506 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | glassy | on | cross | cross | on | off | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | off | glassy | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 2:40PM1.42m | 3:46AM0.95m | 3:54PM1.47m | 5:00AM1.00m | 4:59PM1.53m | 5:58AM1.09m | 5:56PM1.59m | 6:46AM1.18m | 6:46PM1.62m | 7:28AM1.27m | 7:32PM1.61m | 8:08AM1.35m | 8:15PM1.56m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 9:47PM0.30m | 9:09AM0.46m | 10:57PM0.22m | 10:24AM0.42m | 11:54PM0.14m | 11:28AM0.35m | 00:42AM0.07m | 12:24PM0.27m | 1:23AM0.03m | 1:15PM0.21m | 2:01AM0.03m | 2:02PM0.17m | 2:37AM0.06m | ||||||||
6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | |
— | 5:39 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — | 5:40 | — | — | 5:42 | — | — | 5:42 | — | — | 5:43 | — | — | 5:44 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 29 | 28 | 21 | 21 | 18 | 15 | 19 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 11 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 19 | 17 | 13 |
Feels °C | 25 | 24 | 19 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 16 | 15 | 12 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 9 | NE 5 | NE 6 | NE 6 | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SE 11 | S 8 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | S 16 | E 12 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | S 10 |
58 | 19 | 16 | 11 | 220 | 854 | 355 | 329 | 63 | 346 | 421 | 343 | 243 | 5 | 11 | 988 | 800 | 988 | 707 | 634 | 506 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | NE 7 | E 10 | NE 8 | E 10 | E 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | E 10 | N 3 | E 16 | S 26 | ESE 10 | SSE 16 | SSE 23 | E 15 | E 14 | SSE 19 |
7 | 44 | 27 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 320 | 157 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 10 | 138 | 52 | 4 | 16 | 34 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 6 | E 9 | E 11 | E 11 | E 11 | NE 6 | E 10 | NE 8 | — | E 11 | E 10 | NE 9 | E 10 | E 17 | — | SSE 23 | SSE 23 | ESE 9 | S 22 | E 10 | E 13 |
3 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 6 | — | 50 | 102 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 14 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | NW 2 | WSW 3 | SSW 6 | S 9 | S 9 | — | — | SSE 8 | S 9 | — | NNW 2 | W 3 | SSE 8 | SSE 10 | S 10 | — | — | — | NE 3 | — |
— | 1 | 3 | 35 | 461 | 1083 | — | — | 671 | 879 | — | 1 | 5 | 620 | 1787 | 1548 | — | — | — | 2 | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 102 | 0 | 0 | 190 | 86 | 48 | 36 | 0 | 36 | 86 | 5 | 5 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 94 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Illawarra | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Thirroul Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Thirroul provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Thirroul can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Thirroul 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 (Thirroul) 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 Thirroul 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.
Are you planning a holiday in Illawarra? If you are looking for accommodation near Thirroul, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Illawarra, consider staying in Wollongong which is 12 km (7 miles) away. Other places in and around Illawarra where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Port Kembla which is 19 km (12 miles) away, Engadine, Cronulla and Caringbah.










