Church Cove Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s break down what Church Cove has coming for us. I’ll be straight – this whole stretch is looking pretty rough for a proper paddle. If you’re a kite surfer, the setup might get you fired up, because for most of the next 16 days, we’re looking at onshore wind and messy slop.

Kicking off on Saturday, September 5th, there’s a pulse of swell around 5 to 6 ft from the west with a period of 11-12 seconds. That’s moderate wave energy (818) and a decent southwest groundswell, but the wind is cross-onshore. Saturday morning is your only faint glimmer of clean-ish surf, but it’s described as marginal – a score of 2 out of 10 tells you it’s a long shot. By afternoon, it’s a zero. Hard pass.

From Sunday the 6th all the way through late in the second week, this is a write-off for surfing. The swell drops to small, inconsistent leftovers under 3 ft, or when it does pump up to 7 to 8 ft on Monday the 7th and Tuesday the 8th, the wind is howling from the west at 15-18 mph, making it choppy and lumpy. Those bigger west swells (energy up to 2028) are just getting torn apart by the wind. That’s strong wave energy, but for Church Cove with that cross-onshore blast, it’s a no-go for a surfer – maybe a kite session.

There’s a long, dry gap here. Almost two full weeks of poor surf conditions, with scores of 0 across the board. The swell does try to pick up again around Thursday the 10th and Friday the 11th, with 6 to 7 ft west swell, but again, cross-onshore or cross winds at 15-18 mph wreck the face. Between the 12th and 15th, we see some clean mornings (Sunday 13th through Tuesday 15th) with light offshore or cross-off winds from the east and north, but the swell is tiny – only 1 to 3 ft. That’s weak energy (values as low as 37 and 46). The period is decent (10-12 seconds), so it’s clean, but there’s just not enough height to ride.

The one tiny standout might be Saturday, September 19th afternoon – we get a glassy, still wind condition on a 2 ft west swell. That’s basically flat, though. The energy is only 45. If you’re desperate for a splash on a longboard, maybe, but don’t hold your breath.

The best on offer: I hate to say it, but there isn’t a proper standout session for surfing in this 16-day window. The only time you had swell and semi-clean conditions was that Saturday morning, but it was marginal. Our best bet is to wait for the forecasts to change, because this kind of blank run is pretty normal for the area when the wind and swell don’t line up.

Stay patient, keep an eye on it. This is Rusty, signing off.

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