Trestles (Lowers) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, I’m Rusty, and I’ve been staring at the charts for Trestles (Lowers) and honestly, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. The water is sitting at 76°F, which is a whopping 8°F warmer than normal for this time of year – that’s really unusual, feels like bathwater. We’re in for a long stretch of small, marginal surf, with the main action not really kicking up until the second week. Let’s walk through it.

Sunday the 30th is a tough start. There’s a bit of swell around 4 ft from the SSW, with a decent 15-second period, but the wind is a cross-on S at 9 mph, making it choppy. The combined energy is moderate at 629, but the waves are messy. Things don’t get much better through Monday and Tuesday, with heights dropping to 3 ft and 2 ft, period still long but the wind stays cross-onshore or onshore, keeping the quality poor. By Wednesday the 2nd, we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel with 2 ft swell and weak energy (162), and the long 16-second period on Wednesday afternoon just doesn’t have the height to do anything with it. That’s a real frustrating gap of days.

Thursday the 3rd shows a little glimmer, with the swell bumping up to 3 ft from the SSW, period at 12 seconds, and the wind turns light and onshore in the morning, but it’s still only marginal. The afternoon sees a jump to 3 ft with a very long 18-second period and combined energy of 636, but the cross-on west wind kills the clean lines. Friday the 4th and Saturday the 5th are in the same boat: 3 ft to 4 ft from the SSW, period between 16 and 17 seconds, energy creeping up to 697 and 804, but the wind is light and cross-onshore, leaving us with a light chop. It’s frustrating because the swell’s got some guts, but the wind’s just not playing ball.

Now, the standout window is Monday the 8th. Tuesday morning is the real highlight – the swell jumps to 8 ft from the SSW with a 14-second period, and the combined energy is a strong 2378, kicking up serious power. The wind is a clean cross-shore from the WNW at just 6 mph, which is a light breeze. That’s going to produce some solid, punchy waves at Trestles (Lowers), especially for advanced surfers. The swell direction is SSW, which aligns well with the optimum SW direction, so the breaks should be firing. But, be aware – 8 ft is expert territory, and the period is long enough that the sets will be well-spaced, making paddling out easier but the waves themselves powerful. The Tuesday afternoon gets a bit knarly with 12 ft from the SSW and energy at 4036, but the wind turns cross-onshore at 12 mph, which adds a messy chop. Still, for the experienced crew, Tuesday morning is the best bet of the whole 16 days.

The rest of the second week tails off fast. Wednesday the 9th drops to 5 ft with a short 9-second period and poor conditions, and by the 10th to the 14th, we’re back to small, weak swells (3 ft down to 1 ft) with long periods and cross-onshore winds. The combined energy is weak, never cracking 600, and the wave quality is poor. A real blank run for the last few days.

So, to sum it up: the first week is a slog with small, onshore-influenced waves. The real standout is Tuesday morning, the 8th of September, with 8 ft clean SSW swell and light cross-shore wind – that’s the one to circle. The long-period groundswell will be best at the point and reef sections of Trestles (Lowers), but it’s strictly for experts. Everything else is pretty forgettable.

Rusty

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