Whale Rock Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab your board and let’s have a look at what’s coming our way. It’s a bit of a slow start, to be honest. The next few days are pretty much a write-off for anything decent here at Whale Rock, with no real surf to speak of. But hold on, because the back half of the forecast is where the talk gets interesting.

Right now, Tuesday the 8th and Wednesday the 9th are just a total bust. We’re looking at small, weak swell from the SSE with a period of 11 seconds, but the wind is a stubborn cross-onshore, blowing at 15 to 19 mph. The water is sitting at 68°, which is pretty average for this time of year. The combined energy is weak (349 for Tuesday morning), and it’s just choppy and lumpy. Nothing to get excited about.

Thursday and Friday the 10th and 11th are a mixed bag of small, jumbled swell and cross-shore winds. There’s a brief pulse of longer-period swell from the SSW on Friday morning (14 seconds, 173 energy), but it’s still cross-shore and messy. Not worth paddling out for.

The weekend of the 12th and 13th is a bit of a tease. Saturday remains poor with a short 8-second swell and onshore wind. But Sunday the 13th, we’ve got a proper pulse of groundswell from the SSW. The period is 16 seconds, and the swell sits at 4ft. The combined energy jumps to 891, so there’s some real power in the water. The morning is still cross-on, but the afternoon goes cross-off with a gentle breeze, making it clean. This is a reef break, and with that long period, it’s going to be lining up nicely, but it’s also an advanced wave. It’s inconsistent and sometimes crowded, so you’ll have to be patient and pick your moment. This is the first real standout of the window.

The middle of the next week, the 15th of September, is a gem. Tuesday afternoon sees the swell from the East at 6ft with a period of 9 seconds. The wind goes glassy, and the wave comment says “expect good surf conditions.” The combined energy sits at 483. For a reef break, the east direction isn’t its optimum, but the glassy conditions will make it clean and fun. The swell is a bit sizeable for beginners but manageable for most.

Now, looking further out, the 21st of September is a big one. Monday morning holds a solid 10ft swell from the SSW, with a period of 14 seconds. The combined energy is a massive 4680, which is very strong. The wind is cross-off, so the waves will be clean. This is a serious, expert-only swell. The size is well over 8ft, so don’t even think about it if you’re not comfortable in big surf. It’s also inconsistent, so the sets will be bigger and further apart. This is the other standout, but it’s over a week away and a bit of a long-range promise, so don’t book your flights yet.

The days after that drop off in quality, with the wind turning onshore again and the swell size dropping. The 23rd of September has some decent energy (789) and a 14-second period from the SSW, but the cross-onshore wind will mess it up.

So, overall, it’s a slow start, but we’ve got two proper windows to aim for: Sunday the 13th afternoon for a clean, long-period groundswell, and Tuesday the 15th afternoon for glassy, fun waves. The 21st of September is the big one for the experts, but it’s a long way out. Stay patient.

Rusty.

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