Block Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, it's Rusty here, and let me tell you, it's been a tough stretch for us in the Block Island zone. We are looking at a solid gap with basically nothing worth paddling out for from now all the way through to the morning of Sunday, August 17th. That's over a week of flat, messy, or just plain weak conditions.

For the first week, don't even bother. We've got tiny windswell, mostly from the south, with heights barely scraping 3ft and periods so short they're just wobbles. The wind is all over the place—cross, cross-on, sometimes a bit of cross-off—but none of it is good enough to save the day. The energy readings are low, mostly in the double digits or barely breaking 100. It's a write-off.

Now, the light at the end of the tunnel shows up on Monday morning, August 17th. That’s the one to circle. We finally get a bit of a pulse from the SSW, pushing up to 7ft. Now, 7ft is solid, and with a period of 8 seconds it's still a short-period windswell, but the real kicker is the wind. It's a fresh offshore from the NNW at 19 mph, which will clean it right up. The combined swell energy jumps to a solid moderate reading of 459, so there's some push behind it. This is going to be a powerful, chunky wave. Because the swell is over 8ft? No, it's right at that 7ft mark, so it's solid intermediate territory. The offshore wind is the big plus here, promising some hollow, pitching faces if you can find the right bank. Remember, Block Island is a point break and it's exposed to the swell, but it's also "rarely breaks" and crowds are "often," so don't expect to have it to yourself.

The following Monday afternoon, August 17th, backs off a little to 6ft from the SSW with a light NNE cross-off breeze. Cleaner, a bit easier, but the energy drops to 306. It’s a solid secondary session.

For the rest of the second week, it fades back into the small stuff and onshore junk. Tuesday the 18th and Wednesday the 19th look choppy and blown out, with a long-period SE swell that won't do much for this setup. Thursday the 20th has a tiny 2ft SE swell with a 10-second period and a glassy offshore in the morning, but it's just too small to get excited about.

So, to sum it up: the only real window is the morning of Monday, August 17th. That's the standout. Clean, solid, offshore wind. It's a long way off, so keep an eye on it, but that's the one to point the car at. The rest is a waiting game.

Rusty.

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