Zoo (Bull Bay) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's take a good hard look at what's coming our way for the next couple of weeks.

Alright, I'm gonna be straight with you. The outlook for Zoo (Bull Bay) is a bit of a tough one. We've got a persistent run of cross-onshore winds that are going to keep things pretty messy for the foreseeable future. The swell is coming in from the ESE, which is a solid direction for this spot, but it's just not linking up with the wind. The combined swell energy is moderate to strong throughout, with values like 381 (moderate) and peaking at 1358 (strong to very strong) on the 28th, but that energy is lost in the chop.

The first few days, from Monday the 13th through to Wednesday the 15th, are a write-off. The commentary is "poor surf conditions" with a score of 0 out of 10. The wind is a steady cross-on around 9-12 mph, making things choppy. We're seeing swell heights from 6 ft to 8 ft, but it's all short-period, 8-second wind swell, so it's just gonna be a bumpy, onshore mess.

We do get a bit of a shift on Thursday the 16th. The commentary changes to "marginal surf forecast or questionable tide conditions," with a score of 1. The swell height is still solid at 8 ft in the morning, but the period is still a short 9 seconds. The wind is still cross-on, so it's not clean. This pattern of "marginal" conditions continues through the weekend and into the start of the following week. The best we see is a score of 2 on the morning of Sunday the 19th, with a 7 ft, 8-second ESE swell. But it's still cross-onshore.

There's a glimmer of hope on Monday the 27th. The wind finally swings around to a SSE, giving us a true onshore direction, but the commentary says "unknown" for the wave state. The swell is 7 ft from the ESE with an 8-second period. It's a score of 2. It's not amazing, but it's the best we've seen in a while. Then, on Tuesday the 28th, we get the biggest combined energy of the whole forecast at 1358, with a 8 ft, 9-second ESE swell. The score is still a 2 and the wind is cross-on again, so it's still a marginal call.

Honestly, there is no standout day here. The best of a bad bunch is probably the morning of Monday the 27th, when the wind swings around. But even then, it's a gamble. The crowds at Zoo are noted as "sometimes," so you might have it to yourself, but for a reason. The surf is fairly consistent in size, but the quality just isn't there. For a beginner, the swell is often over 5 ft, so it's going to be a challenging paddle with the chop.

Look, it's a tough run. The forecast can change, but as it stands, we're in for a period of average to poor surf. I'd be keeping an eye on that Monday the 27th, but don't hold your breath.

Rusty out.

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