Block Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’m looking at the forecast for Block Island. Straight up, I gotta be honest with you – this is a rough run. The data shows a long stretch ahead with hardly any real surf to get excited about. For the first week and a half, it’s pretty much a bust. The swell is small, the wind is mostly junk, and the conditions are just not cooperating. There’s a big gap of about nine days where you’d be better off doing something else. The only faint glimmer of hope is way out there, and it’s a long shot.

Let’s start with the beginning. Monday the 6th is a write-off. We’ve got a 5 ft ESE swell but it’s getting hammered by a 19 mph cross-onshore wind. Combined energy is weak (161) and the period is a short, weak 6 seconds. It’s lumpy and messy. That afternoon gets even uglier with 28 mph winds. Tuesday the 7th is cleaner but still no good – the swell is too small and weak. This pattern just keeps repeating: small, weak swell from the south or east, with onshore or cross-shore winds. Thursday the 9th, Friday the 10th, Saturday the 11th… all the same story. The wave comment says “poor surf conditions” for nearly every single slot. The energy values are mostly in the double digits or low triple digits, just a weak, weak pulse.

Now, there is one moment that stands out, but it’s a long way off. On Wednesday morning, July 15th, the wind goes glassy. That’s a huge deal. The swell is a modest 5 ft from the SSW with a 7-second period, and the combined energy is moderate (198). It’s not a big swell, but glassy conditions at Block Island can make almost anything rideable. The problem is it’s barely surfable, with a score that barely registers as “ordinary.” It’s the only window in the whole 16 days that even gets a mention of being rideable. After that, the 16th and 17th drop back to tiny, glassy conditions but with almost no swell.

Looking further out, the 18th and 19th of July show a bump in size – 6 ft to 8 ft from the SSW/SW with energy jumping up to 908 on the 19th. But the wind is cross or strong cross-onshore, and the comments are all “messy” and “poor.” That’s the kind of setup that’s more interesting for a kite than a paddle board around here, especially with those short periods.

So, if you’re a surfer looking for a clean, proper session, the only real standout is that Wednesday morning, July 15th. Get up early, hope the glassy wind holds, and you might snag a few clean, small waves. But it’s a long way off and very uncertain. For the rest of this stretch, it’s a waiting game. The water temp is about average for the season around Block Island, but that won’t help the surf. Hang in there.

Rusty.

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