Church Cove Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's chew the fat on what's happening at Church Cove for the next couple of weeks.

Straight up, this is one of those flat spells that makes you want to take up a land-based hobby. The first surfable day in the whole 16-day window... well, there's no *good* one. The forecast kicks off on August 6th with nothing but poor surf conditions. We're talking tiny 1ft to 1ft slop, short periods, and just about every session gets called "poor." That's a solid week of nothing worth waxing up for.

The combined swell energy is weak, barely cracking 50 at best in that first week, and often just hanging out in the 20s and 30s. That tells you everything – just not enough power to push a decent wave. The winds are mostly cross or cross-onshore, throwing chop on top of the ankle-biters. You get a morning or two of clean glass (like the 8th and 9th), but there's no swell to polish.

We do see a little bump around the 12th of August. Swell height kicks up to 3ft to 4ft from the W/WSW, and the combined energy climbs into the moderate range with values hitting 188 then 240. The period sits around 9-10 seconds, so some proper groundswell feel, but here's the kicker: the wind is onshore (SW/SSE) or cross-onshore, chewing it all up. The data still calls it "poor surf conditions."

Later in the second week, from the 15th of August, we get a bit more size – 4ft to 5ft from the WSW – with moderate energy (213 to 255). But again, it's paired with moderate cross-onshore winds, so you're looking at a choppy, lumpy mess. That's big enough to be a handful for beginners (anything over 5ft is for experts, but 4ft with that chop is no picnic). For experienced surfers, it's the best of a bad deal, but it's not a standout.

Honestly mate, there is no standout session in this 16-day forecast for Church Cove. It’s a grim run. The water temp is about average for this time of year, but that doesn't build a wave. For a spot that's fairly exposed to the SW, the wind just isn't cooperating. If you're desperate, the mornings of the 15th through 17th might cough up a few rideable, if messy, 3ft to 5ft waves with clean winds on the 17th (19 mph NNW cross-off), but it's a windy, bumpy affair. This setup looks more interesting for a kite surfer than a paddle surfer, honestly.

Signing off,
Rusty

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