Winkipop Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day crew, Rusty here. We’ve got a bit of a slow burner for the next couple of weeks down at Winkipop. The pattern shows a pretty lacklustre start, with a real window of quality opening up next week if you’ve got the patience. The standout session is going to be Thursday the 17th, but let’s walk through it day by day.

Right off the bat, the water temp sits at 63.7°F, which is actually a touch below the norm for this time of year, so don’t expect it to be that balmy.

The first real chance of anything decent is Saturday morning, September 12. It’s not huge – just a 3.9ft swell out of the south – but the wind goes glassy, and that’s a major plus. The combined energy is moderate (621), and with that 12-second period, you’re getting some proper groundswell push. This is the sort of clean, lined-up Winkipop that’ll have your mates jealous. No crowds report on this one, so it’s a great chance for a sneaky session.

Sunday the 13th and Monday the 14th are a write-off – a run of onshore wind and dropping swell. Don’t bother, just check the wax.

But then we hit Wednesday the 16th, and things start to boil. The morning brings a solid 11.5ft south swell with a combined energy reading of 2097 – that is strong, serious power. The issue is the cross-off wind is a fresh 22 mph. That’s actually clean, but it’s a big, heavy wave. Anything over 8.2ft is strictly for experts, and Wednesday fits that bill. It’s marginal, but if you’re good enough, the afternoon sees 13.1ft of that same swell (energy up to 2847). Still cross-off, still clean, but only the crew with a death wish and a step-up board.

Now, my pick of the whole run: Thursday morning, September 17. The swell drops back to a much more manageable 8.2ft, still out of the south, with a period of 10 seconds. The combined energy is a strong 1363. And the wind? It’s a light offshore from the SSW at 9 mph. That’s clean, offshore, Winkipop at its best – great line-ups, proper bowls. This is excellent surf for any experienced surfer. If you’ve got one shot, this is it.

As we head into the second week, things taper off. Friday the 18th is small and onshore again. The weekend of the 19th and 20th sees the swell bottom out, with just 1.6ft to 1.3ft. The period jumps to 18 seconds on Saturday morning – that's a lazy, long-period groundswell, but with barely a bump to ride. It’s clean, sure, but you’d be scratching for anything. The combined energy is weak (220) on that Saturday morning.

There’s a few days of tiny windswell and onshore junk through the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd. The water temp anomaly disappears from the data here, so no call on that.

But hold on – look at the very end of the window. Friday morning, September 25, the wind drops to absolute glass, 0 mph, with a 6.9ft ENE swell. The period is a short 8 seconds, so it’s windswell, but that combined energy is moderate (584). It’s going to be peaky and fun. That morning session is worth a look, especially if you’re stuck at work waiting for the weekend.

Saturday 26th though, is back to onshore and messy.

So, bottom line: Saturday the 12th morning for a clean, glassy warm-up, and then the big dance is Thursday the 17th morning – solid south swell, offshore wind, and a classic Winkipop bank.

Stay wet, stay salty.

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