Big Rock Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. I’ve been staring at the charts for our local slab, and it’s a bit of a mixed bag over the next couple of weeks. Let’s break it down.

We’re looking at a stretch of days where the surf is mostly just okay, nothing to write home about until we get a little bump of energy late in the first week. The water temp is sitting right about where it should be for this time of year.

The first real chance to get wet starts on Saturday morning, the 26th of July, at Big Rock. It’s a reef setup, so you need to know what you’re doing. We’ve got a solid 3 ft of swell rolling in from the SW, with a long period of 19 seconds. That’s proper groundswell energy, and the combined energy reading is a moderate 838. The wind is light and cross-shore, keeping things reasonably clean. It’s not going to be perfect, but it’s a start. The morning of the 27th of July pushes up to 4 ft from the SW with a period of 18 seconds, and the energy jumps to a strong 1025, but the wind swings to a gentle cross-onshore, so it’ll be a bit choppy. This pattern of so-so, cross-onshore wind continues through the week, with swell hovering around 3 ft to 5 ft. There’s no standout day here, but the best of a weak bunch is probably the afternoon of Thursday the 30th of July. We see 5 ft from the SSW with a period of 14 seconds, and the combined energy is a strong 1133. The wind is light, but it’s cross-onshore, so it’s not the cleanest. Crowds are often here, so expect company.

The real standout, the one you want to circle on your calendar, is Friday morning, the 31st of July. The swell is 6 ft from the SSW, with a period of 14 seconds, and the energy is a hefty 1318. The wind is light and offshore out of the WSW. That’s the key – offshore wind means the wave faces will be clean and peeling. This is a big, powerful reef wave, and at 6 ft, it’s going to be pushing into the intermediate to expert zone. For the experienced crew, this is your window. The energy drops off quickly after that, and by Saturday the 1st of August, we’re down to 5 ft and the wind is still onshore.

Then we hit the doldrums. From around Sunday the 2nd of August all the way through to the end of the forecast on the 9th of August, the swell drops out. We’re looking at tiny, gutless waves of 1 ft to 3 ft. The wind is mostly onshore or cross-onshore, so it’s going to be a washing machine out there. The combined energy readings are all in the weak to moderate range, with some days dropping to just 150. It’s pretty much a flat spell for us. That’s a long gap of about 8 days with nothing worth paddling for.

So, to sum it up: the only true highlight is that Friday morning, the 31st of July, at Big Rock. Get it while it’s good. The rest of the outlook is either marginal or just plain flat. Hang in there, the next pulse might show up on the charts.

Stay frothy,
Rusty

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