Blacks Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright crew, Rusty here. Let’s get straight into it. The next couple of weeks have some real potential, but there’s also a period where Mother Nature just slams the door shut for a bit. Right now, we’re looking at a solid run of groundswell, so let’s talk about where you need to be.

Blacks Reef (Big Island) is your main focus for this whole stretch. It’s up first, and the Friday morning session is looking prime. We’ve got clean, glassy conditions with a light NW wind, and a solid 4 ft of south swell rolling in with a long 17-second period. The energy reading is at 1784, which is strong, and the water temp is about average for this time of year. This is a set-up that will have some proper lines to it. This spot is a reef break that's very consistent, and while it's rated for beginners, the long-period swell can be a bit much for some. It's worth noting this place gets crowded often, so get out there early.

As the day progresses into Friday afternoon, the swell pushes up to 7 ft, still with a long 15-second period, and the wind goes light cross-off from the east. The energy jumps to 2408. It's still excellent, but the size is starting to push into that territory where you need to know what you're doing.

Saturday morning brings another 7 ft of south swell with a 12-second period and a light cross-off wind. Energy is still strong at 1289. It’s a touch less clean than Friday but still very good. The afternoon eases a little to 6 ft but stays clean. Sunday sees the swell ease back to 4 ft, but the wind turns offshore from the NNE, making for some clean, user-friendly waves. It's still good, but the magic of Friday morning is the standout.

Now, here’s the warning. From Monday, the 10th, things drop off a cliff. The swell fades to under 3 ft, and the energy reading falls to just 182. The wave quality goes poor. This flat spell hangs around for a few days, with Monday the 10th through to Saturday the 15th having very little on offer. The energy readings are mostly in the double digits—that’s weak energy. You’d be wasting your time.

The end of that week, Saturday afternoon the 15th, shows a blip of SW swell, but it’s short-period and junky. That’s not what you want. Then Sunday the 16th it gets blown out by a strong S wind, making it a complete mess. This leads into Monday the 17th, where the surf is big, 12 ft, but it’s accompanied by a strong cross-onshore wind. It will be huge, but it'll be terrible.

The standout period for this entire outlook is actually the following week. On Monday the 18th and Tuesday the 19th, the swell gets seriously big—12 ft to 13 ft—but the wave comments say the swell is predicted to be too big for Blacks Reef. It’s a definite expert-only situation, and even then, it might be a washing machine. This is not the time for a casual paddle.

The real second standout comes on Thursday the 20th. The morning is completely glassy with zero wind, and we have 8 ft of SSE swell at 10 seconds. The energy is back up to 1014. It’s big, powerful, and clean. This is a serious session for experienced surfers only. The glassy conditions will make it absolutely perfect. The following Friday morning the 21st also looks great, with 6 ft of clean, glassy surf.

So, here’s the rundown. The best on offer is going to be Friday morning (the 7th) for the best mix of size, period, and wind, with Thursday the 20th being the long-range promise of another classic day. The long-period swells earlier in the period are best at this reef break, but the beach break mentality might struggle with the sets. If the onshore winds pick up in the middle of the month, the setup at Blacks Reef looks more like a kite-surfing day than a paddle-surfing day. Keep your eyes on the horizon, and don't get too attached to the surf in the middle of the month.

Rusty.

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