Cape Schanck Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's chew the fat about what's cooking at Cape Schanck for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – the start of this run is a total bust. We're looking at a solid *four days* of absolutely no-go conditions from Thursday the 23rd right through Sunday the 26th. The wind is howling out of the west and southwest, smashing across the face of the swell. Sure, there's plenty of energy in the water – the combined swell energy is reading between 3,812 and 12,287 (very strong) – but it's all cross-onshore and lumpy, with a score of zero. That's a hard pass, my friends.

We start to see a little hope on Sunday the 26th afternoon. The wind drops back to a gentle breeze, but it's still a cross-shore, and the swell is a modest 6ft from the southwest. The wave state is labelled as marginal, with a combined energy of 730 (moderate). It's not great, but it's the first sign of something rideable after a long, messy gap.

Monday the 27th and Tuesday the 28th bring a change. The wind swings around to the north-northwest, giving us a clean, cross-offshore breeze. The swell drops to 5ft, which is a manageable size, but the wave comment still says "poor surf conditions" and the scores are zero. That's the frustrating part – the wind is perfect, but the swell energy is low (655 to 678) and the period is only 10 to 12 seconds, so it's not packing much punch. Looks better than it rides.

Then we get another nasty spike on Wednesday the 29th. A near-gale from the south-southwest slams in with a massive 16ft swell and an insane combined energy of 13,565 (very strong). That's a pure, dangerous, blown-out mess. Keep your feet dry.

The outlook improves a bit in the second week. Sunday the 2nd of August looks promising. We get a light offshore breeze from the southwest, with a 7ft swell from the same direction, and a period of 17 seconds – that's *very long period* groundswell, meaning proper energy and shape. The combined energy sits at 2,414 (strong). The wave comment is still marginal, but it scores a 2, which is the best we've seen so far. The caveat is that this long-period swell is going to be a bit straight at a beach break, so look for the points or reefs.

The standout, by a long stretch, is Thursday the 6th of August. The morning is the pick of the entire forecast. The wind is a light breeze from the north-northeast, giving us a clean, cross-offshore flow. The swell is a solid 6ft from the southwest, with a period of 15 seconds (very long period groundswell). The combined energy is 2,365 (strong). The wave comment says "excellent surf conditions for experienced surfers" and it scores a 4 – the highest of the whole run. This is the one to circle on the calendar. The water temp is sitting at 57°, which is about normal for this time of year.

The afternoon of Thursday the 6th gets a bit trickier as the wind swings to the south-southwest, turning it cross-onshore, and the swell jumps up to 8ft, which is getting into the expert-only zone.

The very end of the forecast on Friday the 7th of August has a nice note. The afternoon brings a moderate offshore breeze from the east-northeast, with a 5ft southwest swell and a combined energy of 1,036 (moderate). The wave comment says "expect very good surf conditions" with a score of 3. That's a solid, clean, and fun-sized wave to finish the window.

So, to wrap it up: the first week is a complete write-off of dirty wind and blown-out swell. The second week offers a couple of windows, but the clear winner is Thursday the 6th of August for a morning session. That's the one you want to keep an eye on.

Rusty.

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