Crystals Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Well, folks, Rusty here. Gotta be straight with you: the next couple of weeks are looking pretty grim for a paddle. Let’s break it down.

Right now, and for the next week and a half, we’ve got next to nothing at Crystals. It’s a beach and jetty setup, and the swell is just tiny—0.7 ft to 2 ft—with short periods under 10 seconds. The combined wave energy is weak, hanging around 10 to 75 (weak energy). The wind is mostly cross-off or light, so it’s clean, but there’s simply no power in the water. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual. Honestly, from Sunday the 6th all the way through Monday the 14th, it’s a total write-off. You’d be better off doing something else.

Then, around Tuesday the 15th, things start to look a bit more interesting—but not for us. The swell jumps up to 5 ft on Tuesday morning, coming from the ENE, with a short period of 6 seconds. By Tuesday afternoon, we’ve got 5 ft from the east. The combined energy climbs to 160 (moderate wave energy) and then 167. But here’s the kicker: the wind is staying cross-off, so it’s clean, but the swell is short and dumpy. At 5 ft, it’s getting a bit too big for beginners. On Wednesday the 16th, it drops to 3 ft, still short period, and the energy is 91 (weak energy). There’s a risk of thunderstorms on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings.

The real action starts on Thursday the 17th. Swell builds to 4 ft from the ESE, period 5 seconds, and the energy hits 101 (moderate wave energy). But the wind turns cross-on from the NE, making it choppy. By Friday the 18th, it gets messy: 4 ft swell from the east, period 8 seconds, but the wind is strong cross-on from the NE at 25 mph, with heavy rain. The combined energy jumps to 208 (moderate wave energy). Then Friday afternoon, it spikes to 8 ft from the ENE, period 8 seconds, and the energy rockets to 896 (strong wave energy). This is expert territory only—too big for most. The wind is fresh cross-onshore and lumpy.

Saturday the 19th stays big: 7 ft from the ENE in the morning, 6 ft in the afternoon, with energy of 672 and 484 (strong wave energy). Still fresh cross-onshore and lumpy.

Sunday the 20th drops a bit: 4 ft from the east in the morning, 4 ft in the afternoon, with energy at 257 and 212 (moderate wave energy). The wind is onshore now, not good.

Monday the 21st sees the swell drop to 3 ft from the east, period 9 seconds, with energy 156 (moderate wave energy). Wind is onshore, gentle breeze.

The one standout? If you’re an expert and you don’t mind messy, lumpy conditions, Friday the 18th afternoon has the biggest swell—8 ft from the ENE—but with strong cross-onshore wind and heavy rain, it’s a war zone. The best chance for a clean wave actually comes on Tuesday the 15th morning, with 5 ft from the ENE and cross-off wind, but it’s a short-period windswell, not a proper groundswell. For most of us, there’s nothing worth paddling out for.

This setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing, especially on those bigger days with strong cross-off winds.

I’m Rusty, and I’ll be watching the charts.

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