Woolgoolga Back Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here, checkin’ in from the Woolgoolga stretch. Look, I’ll be straight with you – this outlook is a bit of a slow burn. We’ve got a long, dry spell of small, messy conditions before a proper pulse of energy finally shows up towards the end of the second week. It’s not all bad news, but you’ll need patience.

The first real surfable window is a distant promise. For the next week and a half, it’s mostly small and choppy. Thursday afternoon kicks off with a tiny 1ft easterly swell, but it’s onshore and weak, with combined energy sitting at a measly 36. Not worth wetting the board. Friday morning is glassy with a 2ft SSE swell and a period of 10 seconds, giving a combined energy of 95, but it’s still too small to get excited about. Saturday and Sunday stay small, around 2ft to 3ft, with cross-onshore winds messing up the surface. Monday the 10th of August sees a fresh offshore breeze from the WNW at 30 km/h, keeping the 3ft ENE swell clean, but it’s still marginal. The combined energy is 154, so there’s a little push, but it’s not a standout.

Tuesday the 11th and Wednesday the 12th offer brief moments of clean, surfable but ordinary waves. Tuesday morning is a 2ft southerly swell with a 9-second period and light cross-off winds, energy at 148. Wednesday afternoon sees a fresh offshore again, with a 3ft SSE swell and 11-second period, energy at 226. You could get a few, but it’s nothing to write home about. Then from the 13th into the 18th of August, it’s a messy run of fresh, cross-onshore winds and lumpy seas, with swell heights climbing from 1ft to 6ft. The wind is relentless, and the quality is poor for paddle surfing – honestly, this stretch looks more interesting for kite surfing than anything else.

Now, here’s the standout. Mark your calendar for Friday, the 14th of August. That morning, Woolgoolga Back Beach is set to fire for experienced surfers. We’re looking at a proper 8ft SSE groundswell, with a very long 14-second period, and glassy winds. The combined energy is a massive 2158 – that’s serious power. The swell direction is SSE, which is bang on the optimum for this break. The water temperature is 67°, which is about average for this time of year, only 0.7° cooler than normal. It’s an exposed beach, so the long period will make it hollow and powerful, better for the crew who know what they’re doing. It’s too big for beginners, and crowds are possible, so get there early. The afternoon stays solid at 8ft but picks up a light cross-onshore breeze, so the morning is the pick.

Saturday the 15th still has size, with 8ft SSE swell in the morning, but the cross-onshore wind is stronger, and the energy drops to 1449. It’s still big and powerful, but the wind will chop it up. After that, the swell fades and the wind stays nasty through to the 21st of August, with small, weak waves and poor conditions.

So, the only real highlight is that Friday the 14th of August morning session. It’s a long way off, so the forecast is promising but not set in stone, but if it holds, it’ll be the best on offer by a long shot.

Rusty.

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