Cintsa West Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, gather 'round. Rusty here, and I've had a good look at what's coming our way down at Cintsa West.

Alright, so the next couple of weeks are a real mixed bag. We're going to see some solid pulses of energy, but a lot of the time the wind is going to be a pain in the backside, messing up the surface. The water temp is sitting at about 65°F, which feels a bit colder than normal for this time of year, so don't forget the booties if you're heading out early.

The best bet, and the standout of the whole period, is Monday morning, the 31st of August. The wind is going to drop right off to near nothing, going glassy, and we've got a clean 3ft swell wrapping in from the East with a decent 10-second period. The wave energy is moderate (257), but with those perfect conditions, it's going to be clean, lined up, and super fun for an intermediate surfer. Monday afternoon stays OK with the same size and period, but a light cross-onshore breeze will just put a tiny bit of texture on it.

The other session worth your time is early Sunday morning, the 30th of August. It's a bit smaller at 4ft from the SSW, but the wind is cross-shore, not onshore, so it should be rideable despite a bit of a lumpy chop from the moderate breeze (12 mph). The energy is weak (350), but it's surfable. Sunday afternoon actually picks up to 5ft with a very clean cross-offshore breeze, and the combined energy jumps to moderate levels (745), making for some very good surf. That's the call for the first week.

Now, after that good Monday, things get messy quickly. Tuesday and Wednesday are mostly cross-onshore winds with small swell. We do see a big jump in swell energy on Wednesday the 2nd of September morning with a 6ft SSW groundswell (14-second period) and energy readings up to 1162 (strong), but the wind is light cross-onshore, keeping things a bit lumpy. It's a "questionable" call. That's the best we get for a few days.

Thursday the 3rd of September brings more onshore wind and building swell, and by the afternoon, that 7ft swell is getting thumped by an 18 mph cross-shore wind, turning it into a messy chop. The 4th of September is a write-off with heavy onshore winds and a big, powerful 13ft swell (energy 5663) – that's expert territory and blown out to boot. For the next several days, from the 5th right through to the 10th of September, it’s a constant run of cross-shore and onshore winds with small, weak swell. It's really not worth paddling out. There’s a brief glimmer on Monday the 7th of September with a 7ft ENE swell and a clean cross-offshore breeze, but the period is a short 8 seconds and the wind is up at 12-18 mph, so it’ll be a bit of a wrestling match.

After the 10th, it's more of the same – poor conditions and weak swell. The only thing of note is Saturday the 12th of September morning, but a 7ft swell with onshore winds and a short 7-second period is just a mess. Honestly, for the second week, there isn’t much to get excited about. The forecast for Cintsa West over this period is a story of a few clean windows in the first few days, and then a lot of wind-affected slop.

Keep your fingers crossed the models shift. Stay stoked.

Rusty.

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