Flagler Avenue Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – this outlook for Flagler Avenue is a tough one. We’re looking at a real flat spell with very little to get excited about. The pattern is mostly small, weak, and choppy for the first week and a half, with a glimmer of something more workable towards the very end, but nothing that’s going to get the heart pumping.

We start off on Friday, August 28th. The morning has a tiny 1 ft swell from the east, with a light cross-offshore wind, so it’s clean. But the wave energy is a measly 57, so we’re talking about knee-high dribblers at best. The forecast scores it as pretty ordinary, and I’m inclined to agree. The water is sitting at 29°, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

From Friday afternoon through to the end of the first week of September, the story is grim. The wind picks up onshore, the swell stays tiny – between 1.0 ft and 3 ft – and the period is short and weak. The combined energy is mostly in the low double digits, barely cracking 100. This is not surf. It’s a windy, choppy mess. A few days in early September have some glassy conditions in the morning, but the swell is so small (1.0 ft) that it’s barely a ripple. For a beach/jetty setup like Flagler Avenue, this is a blank run.

Now, we finally get a bit of a pulse starting around Tuesday, September 8th. The swell ticks up to 2 ft from the north-east, with a much longer period of 12 seconds. That’s a proper groundswell, and the energy jumps to 104. The wind is a clean cross-offshore. This is the best of a bad bunch. It’s still small, but the longer period means there’s a bit more shape and push to it. Wednesday, September 9th, looks similar with 2 ft from the NE, period dropping to 11 seconds, and clean offshore winds in the morning. Still, at 2 ft, it’s beginner-friendly, but not a stand-out for anyone.

The only real standout in this whole 16-day window, if you can call it that, is around Tuesday, September 8th and Wednesday, September 9th. The swell direction from the north-east is a good match for Flagler Avenue’s optimum, and the clean offshore winds will make the most of what little wave there is. But let’s be honest, it’s small. It’s not a day to call in sick for. The rest of the second week stays small and clean but ultimately unremarkable, with the energy dropping back into the 50s and 60s.

So, the bottom line is: there’s no quality surf on offer here. It’s a long, flat run. Don’t expect much, and if you do paddle out, bring a longboard and low expectations.

Rusty, signing off.

Read more