Block Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright mate, Rusty here with the look ahead for our stretch of coast.

First up, I gotta be straight with you—it’s been a tough run and it’s gonna stay that way for a while. The water temp is sitting at 70°F, which is about average for this time of year, nothing special there. The key spot we’re watching is Block Island, a point break that’s exposed to the swell. Now, this break is a bit of a tease—it rarely breaks as it is, so you need the right conditions to line up. Unfortunately, for the next week and a half, the wave energy is just weak to moderate, with combined energy readings mostly in the 40 to 100 range (weak) and a few bumping up into the low 100s (moderate). The swell is tiny, mostly 1 ft to 2 ft, and when it does show a pulse, the wind is all over the place—cross-shore, cross-on, or even onshore—making for choppy, messy conditions. There’s a real gap here with no surf worth paddling out for from now through the end of August.

Things start to look a little more interesting right at the start of September. On Tuesday the 1st, early morning, we get a light breeze from the NE, clean conditions, and a bit more energy in the water—combined energy at 183, so into the moderate zone. Swell is still small at 2 ft but it’s from the SE with a period of 14 seconds, which is a long-period groundswell, meaning better shaped waves but longer lulls between sets. The wind is cross-offshore, so it’s clean. It’s surfable, but very ordinary. The afternoon goes back to cross-shore chop, so don’t sleep in if you want the best of that day.

Then we get a bigger pulse of energy rolling in for Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th. On Thursday the 3rd, the swell jumps to 3 ft from the SSE with a period of 13 seconds, and the combined energy hits 482—that’s strong wave energy. But there’s a catch: strong winds. Thursday morning has a heavy rain and strong cross-onshore wind at 28 mph, so it’s messy. The afternoon is cross-shore with a strong breeze at 25 mph, still a mess. Not the day to paddle out.

Friday the 4th is the standout in this entire outlook. Morning brings a moderate offshore breeze from the N at 9 mph, clean conditions, with the swell still at 3 ft from the SE, period 12 seconds, and combined energy at 382 (strong). This is the best window we’ve got—clean, offshore wind, solid groundswell energy, and the swell direction is right on the SE optimum for Block Island. It’s still a small wave, but for a point break that rarely fires, this is your chance. The afternoon stays light and clean-ish with a light cross-shore breeze, but the morning is the pick.

After that, it fades again. The weekend of the 5th and 6th sees the swell drop back to 2 ft–3 ft, winds pick up onshore, and energy levels drop into the weak-to-moderate range. The 6th and 7th are blown out with strong onshore winds and messy surf.

So, to wrap it up: there’s a big dry spell until the very end of the first week of September. The true standout is Friday morning, September 4th at Block Island—clean offshore wind, a solid 3 ft SE groundswell, and strong energy. It’s not a big day, but for a spot that rarely breaks, it’s worth a look. Everything else is either too small, too windy, or just plain poor.

Stay patient, and keep an eye on the forecasts—things can change.

Rusty

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