Official Surfline Forecast: Solid Southern Hemi Swell Will Hit Trestles 8th-10th

Rip Curl WSL Finals Forecast

Updated Wednesday Afternoon, September 7th

Brief Overview

• Nice run of SSW Southern Hemi swells Thursday through Saturday
• Small Hurricane Kay swell Fri, larger surf possible Saturday into Sunday
• Wind all over place the next few days but overall best full day is probably Thursday

Official Surfline Forecast: Overlapping SW/SSW Hemi Swells To Produce Rippable Surf

1:00

Hurricane Kay Likely To Remain On The Edge Of The Lower Trestles Swell Window, Will Affect Wind.

THURSDAY 8th: 4-6'+ faces, occ larger sets in AM. Light AM wind trends light to moderate onshore NW in the afternoon.
SWELL/SURF: Mixed Southern Hemisphere SSW swell (easing swell that peaked today) and new SSW swell slowly building. Small SE swell from Hurricane Kay to build late but doesn't do much for surf.
WIND: Light/variable wind in the early morning, trending light onshore by later morning. Low odds for fog. Light to moderate onshore W wind for the afternoon 7-11kts for some bump.

FRIDAY 9th: 4-5' occ 6'+ faces AM, rebuilds to 4-6'+ PM. Breezier E to possible ESE/SE wind
SWELL/SURF: Mixed Southern Hemisphere SSW swell - down a bit early from Thursday but rebuilding in the afternoon. Small SE swell from Hurricane Kay mixes in.
WIND: Breezy/gusty offshore E wind picking up. Potential for wind to shift ESE/SE in the late morning or afternoon. Very hot weather likely, although temps could be up and down quickly dependent on wind direction.

SATURDAY 10th: Building 4-6' faces AM to 5-7' faces PM. Possible side/onshore SE wind
SWELL/SURF: Holding to slow fading SSW Southern Hemi swell and still potential for increased, short period S swell from Kay. Becoming peakier and more broken up through the day.
WIND: Light offshore wind possible early but increasing SE wind for the later morning and afternoon for bumpy and possibly choppy conditions. Rain likely and thunderstorms possible.

SUNDAY 11th: Fading 4-6' faces, some larger sets still possible in AM. Light wind in AM
SWELL/SURF: Short period S swell from Kay and longer period SSW swell will likely be fading. Peaky and broken up but rippable.
WIND: Light/variable wind in the morning trends light onshore for the afternoon. Rain possible.

MONDAY 12th: Smaller 3-5' faces. Light AM wind trends moderate+ onshore for the PM
SWELL/SURF: Southerly swell mix continues, with a decreasing trend expected. Still fun but down from previous days.
WIND: Light morning wind again but potential for stronger onshores from the WNW in the afternoon for more bump. Stay tuned.

Swell/Surf Outlook

The SSW Southern Hemi swell that is peaking today will slowly lose size on Thursday. We expect to see surf running from shoulder high to a bit overhead, with some larger sets still around in the morning.

Wind will be light in the early morning and there is a chance for patchy fog early. However, with the water as warm as it is, odds are low, and it may show more as coastal haze than fog (and/or remain just offshore). Wind trends lightly onshore through mid morning and then should pick up for the afternoon out of the WNW to NW. However, it may be lighter than some models are showing, and the direction isn't too bad at Lowers - definitely better than ESE/SE, which is a possibility on Friday and Saturday.

For Friday we'll see some new SSW Southern Hemi swell build through the day. The morning will probably be down slightly from Thursday (especially Thursday morning) before rebuilding through the afternoon and eventually peaking later Friday before easing slowly on Saturday. Small SE swell from Hurricane Kay may mix in on Friday, but doesn't look like much.

As Kay continues to track north we expect some wind and weather impacts starting Friday. Breezy offshore E wind likely develops through the morning, possibly trending more side-onshore from the ESE to SE through the day. Even if wind does remain offshore - at that potential strength it's not good for Lowers.

For Saturday we'll still see a good bit of SSW Southern Hemi swell running and even if we get skunked from Kay, we'll have slightly overhead sets in the morning. The likeliest type of swell we'll pick up from Kay is short period S swell that could build through the day on Saturday and currently looks strongest Saturday afternoon. That would mean peakier and more broken up surf at Lowers and if SE wind materializes, quality would be low. Rain is likely on Saturday and there is a chance for thunderstorms. Stay tuned, we'll continue to refine these details in the next day or two.

Decreasing surf is expected Sunday into the first part of next week. Our next round of long period SW swell will slowly build on the 13th and looks strongest on the 14th-15th before easing on the 16th. We may see some lingering S swell all the way through mid-next week as well. This swell mix looks a couple notches smaller than the SSW Southern Hemi swell Thursday through Saturday but is still very contestable and fairly fun looking (waist-head high or so). Stay tuned, we'll keep an eye on it.

Next Update: Thursday early evening (local time and if necessary)