Snapper Rocks (Superbank) Alert Guide

Gold Coast, QLD, Australia · part of the Snapper Rocks (Superbank) spot guide

Snapper is forecast-only in our system — the nearest buoy in our set is thousands of kilometres away, and the real ground truth is the Gold Coast / Tweed Waverider off the point. The heights below are open-ocean model readings; the wrap makes the face smaller, not bigger.

The forecaster's checklist

1. 1.Look for a Coral Sea or Tasman cyclone (November to April, peaking January to March) near New Caledonia, Vanuatu or Fiji, or a strong easterly trade fetch, with Southern Ocean groundswell as the shoulder-season fallback.
2. 2.Demand the easterly angle — the point needs east-southeast around 100–140°; too far south and it is shadowed by Cook Island and the mainland.
3. 3.Apply the wrap discount to size: a 6–8 ft open-ocean reading makes a clean 4–6 ft face, and 10–12 ft or more starts to max the bank out.
4. 4.Use the Gold Coast / Tweed Waverider for ground truth (it sits off the point) — our alert runs on the forecast because that buoy isn’t in our set.
5. 5.Confirm the wind is a light southwest-to-west offshore, and remember the whole thing depends on a well-fed, un-gutted sandbank — a perfect swell on damaged sand still won’t link.

Local winds & tide

Best wind: SW–W offshore (light southwest is textbook; the points shelter SE trades) — from 200° to 290° (SSW–WNW).

The Superbank works across most of the tide, with a mild mid-to-low preference for the barrels. No tide series is modelled here, so treat that as advisory.

Dial it in