Galveston Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you. The next couple of weeks are looking flat and pretty grim for any real surf around Galveston. I’m not going to sugarcoat it; there’s nothing here that’s gonna get the heart rate up. We’re looking at a long stretch of small, weak, and messy surf. It’s the kind of forecast that has you checking your gear for dust rather than waxing up.

The whole 16-day window is a write-off for anything decent. From the 5th through the 20th, we are stuck in a pattern of tiny, short-period wind swell. The waves will be small, disorganized, and with the persistent southerly winds, they’re going to be chopped up and crumbly. We’re talking ankle to knee-high slop at best. For the first week, the swell just sits at a sad 1ft to 2ft with periods of only 4 to 5 seconds. That’s pure wind chop, no power behind it at all.

The energy in the water is weak, with the combined swell energy values staying in the low double digits for most of that time. The water temp is running 2° warmer than normal, so it’s a touch toastier than average for the time of year, but that’s about the only positive thing going on.

There’s a little blip around the 14th where the swell bumps up to 3ft and the combined energy jumps to 72, which is still weak, but it’s the most we’ll see. Still, the period is only 6 seconds and the winds are on it, so it’ll be lumpy and poor.

It’s not until the 17th that we see a change in the swell period, jumping to 10 seconds. That’s a more promising sign, but the size just disappears to a pathetic 0.3ft. So you get a longer period but no wave height. It’s the classic tease. That longer period offers better potential shape, but with nothing to push it, it’s flat.

Truth is, Galveston is inconsistent at the best of times, and this looks like one of those times where we just have to be patient. For a beginner, even these small waves might be okay for a float on a foamie, but there’s nothing here worth the drive. Honestly, on a few of those afternoons with the stronger south winds and the choppy, crumbly surf, the setup will look more appealing to the kite surfers than to us paddle surfers.

Hang loose, keep an eye on the forecasts, and this flat spell won’t last forever. The consistency isn’t there, but things can change quickly around here.

Rusty.

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