Crab Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s on offer over the next couple of weeks. Honestly, I’m looking at a pretty grim picture for the most part, so we have to be real about it. There’s no standout session that’s gonna blow your mind, but we will scrape through the details.

The surf pattern kicks off with a pulse of moderate energy, but that’s about it. The whole 16-day window is a tough slog, with long stretches of flat, choppy, or just plain messy conditions. The only real action is bunched right at the start.

Monday 31st August is the only time we see something worth paddling out for, and it’s still a mixed bag. Crab Island is the only spot in the game here. The swell is coming from the WSW at 6 ft, with a period of 9 seconds. The combined energy is moderate at 653, but the wind is a cross-off 16 mph from the WNW, keeping the surface clean. It’s a reef break, pretty exposed, and it’s fairly consistent with a SW optimum, so while the swell direction isn’t perfect, it’s still wrapping in. Monday afternoon drops a touch to 6 ft (551 energy), still clean. For an intermediate, this is the only window. The water temp is about average for this time of year, so nothing unusual there.

From Tuesday 1st September onwards, it’s a disaster. The winds switch to cross-on or cross-shore, bumping up the chop. The swell drops to under 3 ft, and the energy readings fall into the weak zone (below 100). The following days through to the 5th are all plagued by poor surf conditions and fresh breezes, even though the swell tries to hang around 5 ft to 6 ft. The wind is just too strong and wrong direction. By the 6th, the swell bottoms out to 1 ft with glassy conditions, but there’s simply no wave energy. The 7th sees a long-period 15-second groundswell at 1 ft, but it’s a light cross-on wind, and the energy is too weak to do anything – that’s a tease, not a surf.

Mid-week around 8th September there’s a tiny spike back to 6 ft (831 energy) with a light cross breeze, but the period is only 8 seconds and the wind is still problematic. The score is still a zero. After that, from the 9th through to the 15th, it’s a full flat spell. The heights don’t even reach 2 ft, with energy readings stuck in the 10-60 range and onshore winds.

So, what’s the call? The best on offer is Monday 31st August at Crab Island. The morning session is your best bet with a clean 6 ft WSW swell and cross-off wind. It’s not a classic, but it’s the only wave in town. The rest of the week is a write-off, and the second week is a total dead zone. Gaps of several days with no recommendations are common. If you’re desperate, get out Monday morning, but don’t expect much else for a long time.

Rusty.

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