Apache Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it, folks. Rusty here, looking at Apache Pier, and I gotta be straight with you—this 16-day window is a real struggle. There’s a lot of waiting around, very little reward, and you’ll have to pick your moments carefully.

The water’s sitting at about 85°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year—nothing crazy, just a little extra warmth in the water.

Right now, through the middle of August and into the end of the month, we’re looking at a whole lot of nothing. Wednesday afternoon the 19th kicks off with a tiny 1 ft SE swell and onshore wind—just poor, messy conditions. That flat, choppy theme runs straight through Thursday, Friday, and into Saturday morning. There’s a glimmer on Saturday morning the 22nd when the wind swings offshore from the NW and the swell bumps up to 3 ft from the south, but it’s short period (5 seconds) and the combined wave energy is only 72 (weak). It’s surfable but very ordinary. After that, we drop straight back into poor surf for days.

Sunday the 23rd through to Tuesday the 25th is all cross-onshore junk, tiny swell, and zero quality. The only real shift comes Thursday morning the 27th and into the afternoon—cross-offshore winds from the WSW, clean lines, and a 3 ft S swell (6-second period, 61 energy). It’s still not great, but it’s clean and rideable. Friday the 28th morning also has clean conditions with a 1 ft SE swell, but the size is tiny.

Then we hit another gap of poor conditions through Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th. Sunday afternoon the 30th does see a jump in swell energy to 105 (moderate) with a 2 ft SE swell, but the period is 12 seconds and it’s onshore—still no good.

Finally, the standout window arrives at the very end of the stretch. Monday the 31st of August morning: clean cross-offshore wind from the north, 3 ft E swell, 107 energy (moderate), and clean conditions. That afternoon gets even better—glass, 4 ft E swell, 110 energy, and perfect conditions. Tuesday the 1st of September afternoon is also glassy with 3 ft E swell. These are the best sessions of the whole 16 days—small but clean, and the wind is your friend.

Wednesday the 2nd of September morning has a 2 ft SE swell with an 11-second period and 175 energy (moderate), clean cross-offshore breeze. That’s a decent little groundswell window, but the size is small. The afternoon is glassy too. Thursday the 3rd of September morning is glassy but tiny at 1 ft.

Overall, this is a tough forecast. Apache Pier is a consistent spot, but it’s not firing at all. The only real highlights are Monday the 31st and Tuesday the 1st—clean, glassy, and small but fun. If you’re a beginner, those conditions are perfect for you. The rest of the time, leave the board at home.

Rusty.

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