Albatross Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Looks like we’ve got one spot on the radar for the next couple of weeks, and it’s a bit of a mixed bag.

First up, the water at Albatross is running much colder than normal for this time of year—57°F with a massive anomaly of -9°F, so that’s a serious wetsuit day.

We kick things off on Sunday, August 9th, with a morning session that’s got some real grunt to it. 10ft of SW groundswell, with a period of 13 seconds, combining for a very strong energy reading of 3409. The wind is light offshore from the SW, so it’s clean and glassy. This is proper, heavy surf for experienced surfers only—this isn’t a beginner wave. The afternoon turns messy with a cross-off SSE wind, and the swell bumps up to 12ft, but the scoring drops right off, so stick to the morning.

Monday brings more size but the wind goes cross-off and the quality drops. The morning of the 10th has 8ft SSW swell, but the wind is off, making it tricky. The afternoon is similar with 10ft, still cross-off, and not a whole lot of fun.

By Tuesday, it’s a write-off. Onshore winds from the E and SE, chop, and lumpy conditions. The combined energy is still strong (2322 in the morning), but the wind is wrecking it.

The middle of the week sees a few days of small, messy surf and onshore flow. Not worth paddling out.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Starting Sunday, August 16th, the wind swings offshore from the WSW with light breezes. The swell is smaller—4ft with a 13-second period—but the energy is moderate (432). It’s clean, and the conditions are good. A solid, fun, beginner-friendly wave.

Monday, August 17th, picks up a notch. Morning is 4ft, light offshore, clean. Then the afternoon brings a jump to 5ft and a moderate offshore breeze from the SW, pushing the energy to 1192. The surf is very good, clean, and with more push.

The standout window is Tuesday, August 18th. Morning has 7ft of WSW groundswell at 14 seconds, with a very light offshore flow. The combined energy is strong at 1969. It’s clean, powerful, and well-shaped. The afternoon holds at 8ft SW, still offshore, and still very good. This is the best of the run—expert-level but absolutely worth it.

Wednesday, August 19th, brings more size (10ft morning, 8ft afternoon) but the wind picks up to a fresh offshore breeze from the WSW. The energy is still strong (2373), but the bigger swell and stronger wind make it more challenging. Still clean, but it’s a serious paddle.

Then the wheels fall off. Thursday the 20th the wind goes cross-shore and the swell drops. Friday the 21st sees a massive 20ft SW swell, but with a strong onshore wind, it’s a complete mess. That’s a kite-surfing day, not a paddling day.

The last weekend of the forecast (August 22nd-24th) has leftover swell, but the wind is mostly cross or onshore, and the quality is poor. The 24th does have a glassy morning with 10ft SSW swell at 16 seconds, very strong energy (5265), but that’s a late call and a long way off—keep an eye on it, but don’t plan your week around it.

The best bet is Tuesday, August 18th, at Albatross. Clean, offshore, solid 7ft to 8ft groundswell, very strong energy. That’s the one.

Rusty

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