Donuts Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, it’s Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s happening at Donuts over the next 16 days.

To be perfectly honest with you, the outlook is a bit of a bummer. We’ve got a solid 16-day window to look at, but the forecast is painting a picture of mostly cross-onshore winds and poor surf conditions for the majority of it. The water temperature is running a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, sitting at 71°F.

The first week is pretty much a write-off. From Saturday the 5th right through to Tuesday the 8th, we’re looking at a persistent cross-onshore breeze from the northwest, with swell heights bumping up from 3ft to 6ft. The combined swell energy is moderate, ranging from 920 to 1081, but the wind is just chopping it all up. The wave comment is consistently “poor surf conditions,” and honestly, with that wind, it’s going to be a messy, bumpy ocean. Not worth paddling out for.

There’s a glimmer of hope on Wednesday morning, September 9th. The wind goes glassy, and the swell settles at 4ft from the southwest with a decent 10-second period. The combined energy is still moderate at 574, and the forecast finally says “expect good surf conditions.” This is your best chance in the first week, but it’s a narrow window. By the afternoon, the wind turns light cross-onshore, and the swell drops to 2ft, making it only marginal.

After that brief tease, we slide back into a long stretch of poor conditions. From Thursday the 10th through to the end of the forecast window on Sunday the 20th, the swell gets small, dropping to 2ft to 3ft, and the wind is almost always onshore or cross-onshore. The combined energy stays weak to moderate, mostly under 500. A few afternoons around the 18th and 19th of September get a “marginal” tag, but with the swell that small and the wind off, it’s not going to be worth the effort.

The standouts: There’s only one true highlight here, and it’s that Wednesday morning, September 9th. At Donuts (a sheltered reef break that’s inconsistent, so this is a rare treat), the glassy conditions and 4ft southwest swell should deliver clean, workable waves. It’s the only time in the whole outlook where the stars align. The rest of the window is a long stretch of onshore slop and tiny swell. Get out there on that Wednesday if you can, because the forecast doesn’t give us much else to smile about.

Rusty.

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