Delray Public Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let me tell you about Delray Public Beach for the next couple of weeks. It’s a pretty bleak scene for us paddle surfers, to be honest. The whole 16-day window looks flat and messy. There’s practically nothing to get excited about right through to the middle of September. You’ll see small, weak slop from the east and southeast, barely pushing 0.7 ft to 2 ft, with periods all over the shop – mostly short-period, weak junk. The combined energy is pitiful, barely cracking three digits, and often sitting in the low double digits, like 38 or 49. That’s just not enough to surf on a beach break.

The beginning of the month is a write-off. Tuesday the 1st has 0.7 ft from the ESE at 9 mph cross-on, and the water’s warm at 87°, about normal for the time of year, but you won’t care because it’s flat and choppy. Wednesday and Thursday are more of the same – maybe 1 ft tops, with onshore breezes and thunderstorms lurking. The weekend? Don’t bother. Saturday the 5th has 1.0 ft and 0.7 ft with the energy dropping to 7 and 3, and cross-on winds. You can’t even call it surf.

There’s one little window that catches my eye, but it’s not for a while. On the morning of Sunday the 6th, we get a brief moment of hope: clean conditions with a light cross-offshore wind from the southwest, 6 mph, and a tiny 0.7 ft from the east. The period is 8 seconds, so at least it’s a bit of groundswell, and it’s glassy. But it’s still 0.7 ft. You could maybe paddle around on a longboard and catch a dribble, but don’t kid yourself.

The only real spike on the charts is on Wednesday the 16th of September. In the afternoon, the swell jumps to 5 ft from the north-northeast with an 8-second period. The energy finally gets lively at 272. That’s moderate energy, but the problem is the wind is onshore from the east-southeast at 9 mph, and the wave comment says “poor surf conditions.” For a beach break like Delray, that much short-period swell with onshore wind is going to be a lumpy, crumbly mess. Period is only 8 seconds, so there won’t be much power or shape. This is more interesting for the kite surfers than anyone on a paddle board. Honestly, with the wind and the chop, I’d say the setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing that day.

The rest of the second week is dead. From the 9th through the 15th, it’s all 0.7 ft to 2 ft junk with onshore winds. The energy never gets above 42 in that stretch. We’re looking at two full weeks of virtually nothing. If you’re a beginner, even the small stuff is too weak to learn on. If you’re an expert, there’s nothing to ride.

So here’s the truth: the best day on offer is probably the morning of Sunday the 6th, because it’s glassy and you might get a clean little waist-high slop if you’re lucky. But calling that a standout is a stretch. The other “best” option is the 5 ft on the 16th, but with onshore wind and poor conditions, it’s more of a kite day. Overall, this is a long, dry spell on Florida’s southeast coast. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, you just have to wait for the next front or tropical system to change things. Forecasts can shift.

Rusty

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