Doolin Point Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s shaping up for Doolin Point. I’ll be straight with you – the next week and a half is a bit of a battle with the wind, but there’s a couple of windows where it all comes together. This is a reef setup, expert-only territory, and it’s going to stay that way.

First up, we’ve got a long stretch of poor conditions kicking off from Monday the 14th. The water is sitting at 61°F, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year – that anomaly of 3°F is notable, so you might not need the thickest wetsuit right away. But don’t let that fool you. Monday and Tuesday are a write-off: strong cross-onshore winds and messy surf. There’s some moderate wave energy building mid-week (combined energy around 555–785), but the wind is ruining it. Wednesday the 16th through to the 22nd? Just more of the same – fresh to strong breezes, onshore or cross-on, with chest to head-high swell coming in from the west-northwest or west. It’s an exposed reef, so it’s handling it, but the surface is lumpy and chop is ruining the shape. On Thursday the 19th and Saturday the 21st, you’ll see some cleaner windows with offshore wind, but the swell height is only around 6ft to 7ft, and the period is short (8 to 10 seconds). Not a standout, just a glimmer.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Hold your horses for Thursday the 24th. That’s your best bet in the entire forecast. The morning brings a clean, cross-off wind from the southeast at 9 mph with a solid 4ft groundswell from the west. The period? A massive 18 seconds. That’s very long-period groundswell, packing serious energy – combined energy is 911 (moderate) but rising. The afternoon gets even better: still cross-off, 7ft of west swell at 14 seconds, and the combined energy jumps to 1653 (strong). The wind is light and clean. For a reef break like Doolin Point, that long period is going to produce some lovely, lined-up waves, but it also means bigger sets and longer gaps. Expect some proper freight trains. This is the standout – expert only, especially over 8ft, but Thursday afternoon is borderline there at 7ft. It’s a fair crack.

After that, Friday the 25th drops back. Still clean in the morning with a cross-off, but the swell fades to 4ft at 12 seconds. Ordinary. Saturday and Sunday are tiny with onshore wind. Then Monday the 28th and Tuesday the 29th? More strong cross-onshore winds and messy 8ft swell. Not for paddle surfing – that setup looks more interesting for kite surfing.

So, in summary: suffer through the first week of crud. Thursday the 24th is the real gem – that afternoon session in particular. The rest is either blown out or too small. Look after yourselves.

- Rusty

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