Backdoor 4 Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's cookin'.

Right off the bat, it’s a weird one for Backdoor 4 (Hawaii). The water temp is sitting at 67°, which is a full 2° warmer than average for this time of year – feels like we’re already in summer mode. But don’t let that fool you into thinking we’re getting easy waves. The whole first week is basically a washout for us regular paddlers because the swell is just way too meaty. We're looking at a serious pulse of Southern Hemi energy arriving Saturday the 5th of July that’s just too big for this spot to handle.

Saturday the 5th kicks off with a solid 12 ft S swell at 11 seconds, blowing offshore but the energy is enormous (2616). It’s an expert-only zone. That trend holds all the way through until Friday the 11th of July. The swell stays big, but the real kicker is those offshore and cross-off winds keeping the faces clean. Even though the conditions look like a postcard, the wave heights are consistently over 8 ft, so this isn't for the faint-hearted. The combined energy just screams power, with most sessions showing three-digit figures and some like Sunday afternoon the 6th hitting 2640.

The one true standout window for a wider crew finally appears on Friday the 11th of July morning. The swell drops back to 8 ft from the SSE (11 seconds), but the magic is in the wind – it’s glassy. Absolutely still air. For a reef break like this, that’s as good as it gets for clean lines. It's still shoulder-to-head high plus, so it’s not a learner wave, but for anyone solid intermediate and above, that Friday morning is the pick of the entire period. The energy is still strong (1299) but manageable. Friday afternoon stays clean with a light cross-off, just a touch smaller at 8 ft.

After that, things get a bit sad. From Saturday the 12th through to Tuesday the 15th of July, we have a proper flat spell. The swell drops to barely a ripple – 3 ft on the Sunday, then down to 0.7 ft by Tuesday the 15th morning. Wind is onshore or cross-shore, making it choppy and messy. No point even looking at it. That’s a solid 4-day gap of nothing.

Then, just when you think it's over, Tuesday the 15th afternoon throws a massive curveball. The swell jumps to 15 ft from the S at 11 seconds. The energy reading is a staggering 4082. It's clean with cross-off wind, but that is a monster. It stays huge through Wednesday the 16th and Thursday the 17th – all 10 ft or bigger. This is strictly for the heavy crew on the biggest boards they own. It'll be breaking way outside, pitching hard.

We get a slight reprieve on Friday the 18th of July with a drop to 7 ft SE groundswell, but the wind is a fresh offshore (19 mph), making for clean but tricky conditions. That’s another expert session. The final weekend (Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th) stays solid with 8 ft to 12 ft sets, clean and lined up, but still too much for a normal day out.

Bottom line: This is a big-wave period for Backdoor 4. If you’re not a charger, the only window worth paddling for is that glassy Friday the 11th of July morning. Everything else is either flat or frightening.

Rusty.

Read more