Crouching Lion Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the cards for your local waves.

Honestly, I'm looking at a pretty grim stretch of weather and swell for the next couple of weeks. The whole 16-day window is a bit of a write-off for decent surf. The energy is there at times, sure, but the wind is just relentless. We're looking at a solid week of cross-onshore ENE winds, blowing 15 to 22 mph, which is going to chop everything up into a lumpy mess. There's a bit of a gap in the first week with some reasonable swell, but the conditions are just too poor to recommend it.

Let's walk through it. Starting Monday the 31st of August, we've got a 7 ft ENE swell with a short 8-second period, and the wind is a fresh cross-onshore. The combined energy is moderate (429), but it's all for nothing. The wind state is "fresh cross-onshore and lumpy," and the wave comment is flat-out "poor surf conditions." This theme continues all the way through the first week, with the swell actually building to 8 ft by Friday the 4th of September, with the energy jumping to 1016. But that wind is still blowing 22 mph, cross-onshore, making it a choppy, messy affair. The swell is also coming from the wrong direction for the point. Crouching Lion (Big Island) is a point that needs a NE swell, not an ENE. It's just not going to work.

There's a little glimmer of hope on Saturday the 5th of September. The swell direction swings to the east, and the period jumps to a very long 14 seconds, with the combined energy hitting 1277. That's a lot of power. But again, the wind is still a moderate cross-onshore, and the report says "poor surf conditions." The swell is so big at 8 ft in the afternoon that it's really only for experts, and the wind is still chopping it up. It's a tease.

The middle of the second week, around Tuesday the 8th of September, the wind finally drops and shifts. We get a clean, cross-offshore wind state from the SSE. The swell drops to 4 ft, and the period is short at 9 seconds. The energy is moderate (473). You could get a clean wave, but it's small and the period is poor. The afternoon gets a "marginal" rating, with a 5 ft, 8-second swell. It's not great, but it's the only time in the whole 16 days we see a clean wind state. That's the only window you'd even consider paddling out, and even then, it's a gamble.

For the rest of the second week, it's back to the same story: cross-onshore wind, lumpy, poor surf. The swell energy drops right off, with values in the 100s and 200s by the time we hit the 12th of September. The water temperature sits at 80°F, which is about average for the time of year, nothing out of the ordinary.

So, the bottom line is: there are no standouts. The best on offer is a fleeting, clean moment on Tuesday the 8th of September, but it's small and weak. The whole period is a blank run for decent surf. It's a tough one to call, but maybe the winds will shift and the forecasts will change. For now, it's a good time to wax the board and wait.

Rusty.

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