Bud Bud Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’ve been staring at the charts for Bud Bud. I gotta be straight with you—this is one of those stretches where the ocean just ain’t cooperating. We’re looking at a long, frustrating run of small, weak swell and messy wind, so don’t get your hopes up too high.

Over the entire 16-day window, the surf is tiny and the conditions are mostly poor. For the first week, we’ve got nothing worth paddling out for—day after day of sub-2ft swell from the west, with periods around 9-10 seconds. That’s a weak, short-period affair, with combined wave energy barely hitting 48 (weak energy). Most mornings have a light or gentle breeze that tries to keep things clean, but the swell is so small you’ll be bobbing around more than riding. Afternoons get chopped up by cross-onshore winds, usually 9-12 mph. The water temp is about 69°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, but that’s small comfort when there’s nothing to surf.

From Saturday July 11 morning, we finally see a glimmer—2ft swell from the west, period 9 seconds, with a light cross-offshore breeze from the southeast at 9 mph. The wave comment is “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions,” and the score is just 1 out of 10. It’s clean, but tiny. If you’re desperate for a longboard and don’t mind weak waves, you could get wet. After that, it’s back to poor conditions for several days.

There’s another tiny window on Tuesday July 14 morning—1ft from the west, 10-second period, cross-off breeze from the east-southeast at 9 mph. Again, clean but weak. Wave energy is 47 (weak). A real glass-half-full situation.

We get a bit more interesting around Friday July 17 morning—1ft from the west-northwest, 8-second period, but with a fresh offshore wind from the east at 22 mph. That’s a strong offshore, so it’ll be clean, but the swell is still tiny. Not worth a drive.

Then, on Saturday July 18, we see the biggest swell of the outlook—3ft from the southwest, period only 6 seconds. That’s a short-period, choppy, onshore wind mess. Combined energy hits 65 (still moderate), but with onshore winds at 12-19 mph, it’s gonna be bumpy and ugly. This is more of a kite-surf setup than a paddle-surf setup.

After that, it’s back to tiny, weak, and bumpy right through to the end.

There are no standouts here. Honestly, the best chance to surf is on Saturday July 11 morning or Tuesday July 14 morning—both clean but with tiny 1-2ft waves. You’ll need a longboard and low expectations. Crowds at Bud Bud can happen sometimes, but with conditions this poor, you’ll probably have the place to yourself.

So, plain and simple: put the board away for a while, or go find a lake. This is a tough run, but it won’t last forever—forecasts change.

- Rusty

Read more