Fifth Street (Miami) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I gotta be straight with you – it's a tough stretch coming up for Miami. The whole 16-day window is looking flat, real flat. We've got a solid stretch of almost nothing, and it's not until the very end of the run that we see a tiny flicker of life.

Right now, the water's sitting at a toasty 87°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year. But that's about the only thing worth getting excited about.

Looking at the whole forecast, there's a massive gap of good surf. From Wednesday the 19th right through to the end of August, the swell is tiny, the wind is nearly always on it or cross-shore, and the energy is just pathetic. We're talking about combined swell energy readings of 3 to 17, which is super weak. You’d be lucky to find a ripple.

The only break on the cards is Fifth Street (Miami). It's a sheltered beach and reef setup, but it's inconsistent and often crowded, and it's not firing at all. Over the first week, the swell is constantly under 3 ft, and the period is short, between 3 and 6 seconds. That's just wind chop, nothing with any push. The wind is a mess too – lots of cross-onshore breezes from the SSE and SE at 12 to 16 mph, making it choppy and messy. It's not worth paddling out for.

Even when the wind goes light, like on Thursday morning the 20th or Friday morning the 21st, the swell is still only 0.3 ft. The water is clean, but there's nothing to ride.

Now, right at the end, things get a little interesting. If you're a patient surfer, the first week of September might offer a tiny window. On Tuesday the 1st of September, we get a bit of a pulse from the east with a swell of 0.7 ft and a period of 12 to 13 seconds. That's a much longer period, which usually means better shaped waves, but at 0.7 ft, it's still tiny. The combined energy climbs to 28, which is still weak, but it's a step up from the 3's we've been seeing. The wind is onshore, which isn't ideal, but it’s light from the east at 3 to 9 mph.

Then on Wednesday morning the 2nd of September, the swell direction shifts to the NNE, which is the optimum direction for this spot. The swell height nudges up to 1 ft, period is still a short 7 seconds, but the combined energy hits 43. That's still weak, but it's the highest we've seen in the whole 16 days. The wind is onshore from the ENE at 6 to 12 mph. This is about as good as it's going to get, but it's still a long shot. It's a long-range call, so don't bank on it, but it's the only thing on the horizon.

If you're looking for a wave, you're probably better off waiting for the next system. This stretch is a write-off for paddle surfing. The small, weak swell and onshore winds might make Fifth Street more interesting for kite surfing than a traditional surf session. Keep an eye on the charts, but for now, the board stays in the car.

Rusty.

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