Emma Wood State Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for the next couple of weeks. To be straight with you, this stretch is a real tough one for surfers. We’re lookin’ at a solid 16-day window, but the first proper chance to get wet doesn’t show up until the 23rd of August, and even then it’s a struggle. There’s a bit of a gap at the start, but honestly, you’re not missing much.

The only spot in the game here is Emma Wood State Beach. It’s a beginner-friendly beach and reef setup, fairly consistent, but the vibe is off. The water is sitting at 70°F which is about 7°F warmer than normal for this time of year — that’s very unusual, feels like bathwater. The swell direction is mostly SSW, but the wind is a constant cross-onshore, which is killin’ any chance of quality. The combined wave energy is weak to moderate, ranging from 59 to 556, which is a lot of energy for not much actual rideable face. The swell heights are tiny, between 1.0 ft and 5 ft, and the period is all over the place. On the 28th of August, you get a 19-second period swell, but it’s only 1 ft, so it’s a long-wait groundswell that’ll just fizzle on the beach. That kind of long period is better suited to a point or reef, but here it’s just a tease.

The best on offer, and I’m scrapin’ the barrel here, is probably the morning of the 5th of September. You’ve got a 3 ft SSW swell at 17 seconds, with light cross-onshore winds at 6 mph. The combined energy is 556, which is the highest in the window, and it’s a Saturday, so that’s a tiny spark. But don’t get excited — it’s still poor, the wind is still onshore-ish, and the break is a beach-and-reef setup, so that long period means it’ll break straight and fast. Not a standout for paddle surfing. Honestly, with all that cross-shore wind and the small, weak swell, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than for a proper surf session. If you’re a kite surfer, you might get a look on the 4th and 5th of September afternoons when the wind bumps up to 9 mph and the energy is high.

The rest of the days are just rinse and repeat: tiny swell, crummy wind, and “poor surf conditions” stamped all over it. There’s no real standout. If you’re a beginner, you could paddle out on the 25th of August morning — 1 ft, 16-second swell, light breeze — but it’s not gonna be a memorable session. The second week is more of the same, just with a bit more energy but no improvement in quality. The 3rd of September afternoon has a 5 ft swell, but it’s a 6-second period and cross-onshore wind at 9 mph, which is just a choppy mess.

So, honest truth: this is a blank run for surfers. It’s one of those times where the forecast is just not on our side. But it’s a beach setup, so forecasts can change, and it tends not to stay this poor for long. Keep an eye on the wind shiftin’ offshore, that’s the only thing that could turn this around.

Rusty.

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