Galveston Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – the next 16 days for the Galveston area are looking pretty grim. We’ve got a solid two-week stretch of tiny, weak surf coming up, and frankly, there’s nothing here that’s going to get the stoke going. We start with a few days of flatness before we even see anything worth mentioning.

The only break we’ve got is Galveston, a breakwater setup that’s inconsistent at the best of times. The water is sitting at 87° and running about 4° warmer than average for mid-September, which is a touch warmer than normal, but that’s where the good news ends.

The first hint of any rideable energy doesn't show until Saturday the 12th of September, with a tiny 2ft swell from the south, but the period is short at 5 seconds and the combined swell energy is a low 20 (weak). The wind is cross-shore, so it’s messy. The rest of that weekend and all of the following week are filled with 2ft southerly slop with onshore winds, weak energy readings of 22-37, and the wave comment reading “poor surf conditions.” It’s small, choppy, and not worth the paddle.

We finally get a bit of a reprieve around Thursday the 17th and Friday the 18th. On Thursday morning, the wind goes glassy with a very light easterly, and on Friday we get some clean cross-offshore winds from the NNE and NE. The wave size is still just 2ft - 2ft from the southeast with a period of 6 seconds and energy readings of 15-18 (still weak). It’s clean, but it’s tiny. You might get a knee-high roller with a clean face, but it’s a long way to go for a micro-session.

After that, it flat-lines again. The 20th and 21st see the swell dropping to 0.7ft, and even though the winds are clean out of the northeast, the energy is down to 3-5. There’s nothing to surf.

The best call in this whole 16 day window is probably Friday the 18th of September. It’s not a standout in any real sense, but it's the closest we get to a surfable window. The swell is 2ft from the SE, period 6 seconds, with a clean cross-offshore wind. It’s a spot for a longboard and a lot of patience. Given the break is inconsistent and can get crowded sometimes, it might just be you out there anyway.

If you’re desperate, keep an eye on the 23rd of September, where the swell bumps up to 3ft from the SE (energy 39, still moderate), but the wind on the morning is a clean cross-offshore from the NNE. That's a promising blip on the radar for a week and a half out, but it’s too far to bank on. Know that the long-range potential is there, but it’s uncertain.

Honestly, for most of this period, with the tiny, weak swell and onshore wind, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. We’ll keep an eye on it, but for now, the forecasts are pretty grim.

Rusty.

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