Airports Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into what’s happening at Airports, the only spot on the menu for this outlook. We’ve got a solid run of swell on the way, but it’s not all clean sailing.

We kick off on Saturday, August 29th with some afternoon waves. The swell is already a decent 5 ft from the SSW, with a long period of 19 seconds. That’s proper groundswell, packing a lot of punch. The wind is cross-onshore though, from the S at 9 mph, which is gonna put a bit of chop on the face. It’s rideable, but not the cleanest.

Sunday, August 30th sees the swell building. Morning sets are around 8 ft, and by the afternoon it’s pushing 8 ft from the SSW, period dropping a touch to 18 seconds. That’s some serious energy now. But again, that same S cross-onshore wind is messing with the surface. This is getting into expert territory size-wise, but the wind is a real bummer.

Monday, August 31st, the wind finally shifts. We get a SW wind at 6 mph coming straight onshore. Swell is still solid at 7 ft in the morning and 7 ft in the afternoon, period at 16 seconds. It’s a bit of a wash with the onshore breeze, and there’s even a risk of thunderstorms in the afternoon.

Now here’s where it gets good. Tuesday, September 1st is the standout. The morning and afternoon both see 6 ft of SSW swell with a period of 15 seconds. The energy is still strong. But the magic is the wind: glassy. Absolutely no wind. This is as clean as it gets. The water temp is sitting at a warm 86°, which is about 2° above average, so not a huge anomaly, just a nice warm bath. This is the window for experienced surfers to score some real quality. For a reef break like Airports, that long-period swell and clean conditions are gonna produce some nice lines. Keep an eye on the crowds, as it’s a spot that’s sometimes busy, especially when it’s this good.

Wednesday, September 2nd, the swell starts to drop a little. We’re looking at 5 ft in the morning and 5 ft in the afternoon, period shortening to 14 seconds. A light cross-shore from the SE at 3 mph keeps things clean enough, but it’s not the glass of Tuesday.

Thursday, September 3rd, the swell shifts direction a bit to the SSE. Morning glass is back with 5 ft and an 11-second period, but energy is dropping. It’s good, but the afternoon sees a cross-onshore creep in.

Friday, September 4th is another clean one. The morning and afternoon both have glassy conditions with 5 ft from the SSE, period at 10 seconds. Energy is lower, but the light NW and WNW winds at 3 mph will make for a really pleasant surf session. This is a good one for the weekend warriors.

From Saturday, September 5th, things start to fade. Swell drops to 5 ft, then 4 ft, and the period falls to 10 seconds and then 9 seconds. The wind stays light and clean for a while, but the energy is dropping. We get a few days of marginal, small surf through to the middle of the following week.

There is a bit of a gap of several days with nothing really firing from around the 6th until the 13th.

Then on Sunday, September 13th, we see a new pulse. The swell jumps back up to 7 ft in the morning and 7 ft in the afternoon from the SSW, with a period of 17 seconds. The energy is back up. However, the wind is straight onshore from the SSW at 6 mph. This is promising for the long-range, but with that onshore wind, it’s a bit of a gamble. It’s a promising signal, but we’re looking at a week and a half out, so keep an eye on the charts.

So, to wrap it up: Tuesday, September 1st is the absolute best bet for clean, glassy waves with good size and power. Friday, September 4th is the other solid option for clean, smaller waves. The rest is a mix of onshore chop or fading swell.

Stay safe out there.

Rusty

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