Cardiff Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s coming down the pipe for Cardiff Reef. I gotta be straight with you – the next week and a half is looking pretty grim. We’ve got a long stretch of small, chopped-up, or just poor-quality surf. The wind is mostly on it or cross-on, and the water temp is sitting about average for this time of year, so nothing to get excited about on that front either.

We kick off on Tuesday, the 14th of July, with tiny waves around 2ft to 2ft. The wind is onshore, making it a grovel at best. The combined swell energy is weak (228 to 253), and the period is long, but there’s just no push. This flat, poor quality continues through Wednesday, the 15th, with a light cross-onshore breeze messing up the waist-high slop. Thursday and Friday the 16th and 17th are a write-off – moderate cross-onshore winds whipping up a chop on a 3ft windswell (period around 8-9 seconds). The energy is still moderate (317-379), but it’s ugly.

The weekend of the 18th and 19th doesn’t save us. Saturday has a clean-looking 3ft from the SW with a long 18-second period, but the wind is cross-onshore. The energy ticks up a bit (387-400), but the report still calls it poor. Sunday morning is the same, with a 3ft SW swell and onshore wind. By Sunday afternoon, the energy jumps to 582, but it’s still a marginal call.

The first part of the next week, Monday the 20th through Wednesday the 22nd, is more of the same: small SW/SSW swells (3ft to 3ft), onshore and cross-onshore wind, and energy readings mostly in the 400-700 range. It’s a frustrating pattern.

Then, from Thursday the 23rd, it gets even smaller, dipping to 1.0ft, before we finally see a pulse of energy building. Friday the 24th afternoon shows a 4ft SSW swell with a long 15-second period, and the energy rockets up to 986. The wind is still onshore, but it’s a light breeze. This sets the stage for the one real standout in the whole forecast.

Saturday, the 25th of July, is the best we’ll see. Saturday morning brings a solid 7ft SSW swell with a 13-second period. The combined energy is a strong 1823. The wind is glassy onshore from the W at 9 mph, which will keep it clean. Now, 7ft is getting into the “experts only” territory, especially for a reef break, but this is a proper groundswell with some punch. The only downside is the swell is coming from the SSW, and Cardiff Reef’s optimum is a WNW, so it won’t be as perfect as it could be, but it’ll be the biggest and most powerful the reef has seen in a while. It’s not a beginner wave at this size, and crowds are sometimes an issue here, so get there early if you’ve got the experience.

Sunday the 26th drops back to a 3ft SSW swell, but the period is a very long 19 seconds, and the energy is still strong (1285). The wind is light cross-onshore, so it’ll be a bit lumpy, but this is your last chance for a decent wave in the 16-day window. The following week (27th-29th) fades back into small, marginal, and onshore conditions.

So, to sum it up: a lot of flat and poor days, with one clear, powerful standout on Saturday the 25th for the experienced crew. Keep an eye on that one.

Rusty.

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