Buffalo Bay Wildside Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let me have a look at what’s on the cards for the next couple of weeks.

First off, Buffalo Bay Wildside is a bit of a beast, and it’s inconsistent – it doesn’t fire all the time. Right now, we’ve got a gap at the start of the forecast. The first surf we can really talk about doesn’t kick in until Saturday, July 11th. Before that, Thursday and Friday see a massive 10ft swell from the SSW, but with the combined energy hitting over 3500 (3573), that’s just way too much juice for this break. It’s a miss for paddle surfing.

So, the real start is Saturday morning, July 11th. The swell has dropped to a still-chunky 8ft from the SSW, with a period of 12 seconds. The combined energy is still strong at 1854. The wind is light and offshore, ESE at 3 mph, so it’s going to be clean. That’s a solid option for experienced surfers only. The water’s sitting at 62°, which is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual.

Saturday afternoon, the wind picks up to 12 mph from the ESE, still offshore, but that breeze will make it a bit more challenging. The swell holds at 8ft.

Sunday, July 12th, things settle down. Morning sees a 5ft SSW swell (11 sec period, 1051 energy) with a nice 6 mph ENE offshore wind. Clean and a much more manageable size. Afternoon drops to 5ft.

Monday, July 13th, is looking like a standout. The morning is glassy – no wind at all, 0 mph from the S. The swell is 4ft from the SSW, with a 10-second period. The energy is a moderate 512. It’s not huge, but with those perfect conditions, it’ll be a really fun, clean day for anyone. The afternoon stays glassy with 4ft from the S.

Tuesday, July 14th, is another glassy morning, with a shift in swell direction to ESE at 4ft, but the period is short at 8 seconds. That’s more of a windswell, so shape won’t be as good, but with no wind, it’ll still be a pleasant paddle.

Now, we hit a bit of a lull from Wednesday, July 15th, through to Thursday, July 16th. The wind turns onshore and the conditions get messy. Thursday afternoon, though, sees a massive 10ft SW swell with a 14-second period and 3595 energy, but the wind is cross-shore and the setup is for experienced surfers only. The waves will be there, but it’s a big, powerful beast.

The first true standout in the second week looks like Saturday, July 18th. The morning is glassy, with a 8ft SE swell pushing in. The energy is moderate at 1054. The wind is calm, WSW at 3 mph. That’s clean, decent-sized, and a good challenge for the more experienced crew. The afternoon sees it jump to 10ft from the ESE, but with a short 8-second period, and the wind is light offshore, so it’s still clean but a bit too big for most.

Monday, July 21st, is worth mentioning. The afternoon has a 7ft SSW swell with a 14-second period and glassy winds from the S. That’s a long-period groundswell, so it’ll have plenty of power and shape, but it’s best for the point or reef setups. The energy is strong at 1758.

The absolute best of the whole run, though, is Wednesday, July 22nd, in the afternoon. We’re looking at a 8ft SSW swell with a very long period of 16 seconds, and the combined energy is a massive 4777. The wind is cross-offshore from the NNW at 6 mph, and it’s clean. That’s a serious, powerful groundswell for experts only. It’s the kind of day you wait for.

Then Thursday, July 24th, ends the forecast nicely with a glassy afternoon, a 7ft SW swell, and a 16-second period. Clean and powerful.

So, overall, the standout is that Wednesday afternoon, July 22nd. If you’re an expert, that’s the one to circle. The Saturday morning, July 18th, is a close second for a bit smaller, still clean fun. The first week has some good, clean days, but the real power shows up in the second week.

Rusty.

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