Gold Beach/South Park/Hunter Creek Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's get into it for the Gold Beach area, and I gotta be straight with you from the jump – this forecast is a tough one to love. We're looking at a solid 16 days of potential, but the ocean’s not making it easy on us.

We’re starting off with a long wait. From the get-go, it’s all cross-onshore winds and choppy, poor conditions. The water is sitting at 52°, which is a staggering 5° colder than normal for this time of year – that is very unusual, so you’ll be needing the thickest wetsuit you’ve got. The combined swell energy is mostly in the moderate range (433), but the wind just ruins it. This messy stretch runs right through until Saturday the 19th of July. The winds are relentless, mostly from the NNW, and the wave comment on every single one of those days is "poor surf conditions."

Now, I see a glimmer of hope. It comes on Sunday the 19th of July in the afternoon. We finally get a glass-off. The wind swings to the west at just 3 mph, turning it glassy. The swell is 5 ft from the NW with a short period of 8 seconds, but the combined energy is a solid 637 (moderate). The wave comment says "expect very good surf conditions." This is your window. It’s the only standout in the whole window. Gold Beach is a beach and reef setup that’s fairly consistent, and the wind direction (W) is cross-offshore for a spot that prefers a W swell. Crowds can be often here, so on a Sunday afternoon with clean conditions, expect company.

After that Sunday afternoon window, it gets dicey again. Monday the 20th of July kicks off a run of marginal to poor conditions as the wind goes back to a cross-onshore flow. The swell stays in the 5 ft to 7 ft range through to Wednesday the 22nd, but that NW wind just kills the surface. By Wednesday morning the 22nd, we see a big spike in energy (1403 – that’s strong wave energy), but it’s all cross-onshore chop at 7 ft, making it a real mess. That’s more of a kite-surfing day than a paddle-surfing day.

The rest of the forecast into the second week (from the 23rd of July onward) is a repeat of the same story: persistent NNW cross and cross-onshore winds, lumpy and messy conditions, with poor surf quality across the board. There are a few pulses of longer-period swell from the SW (18-19 seconds), but the strong, messy wind spoils any chance of it cleaning up. It’s a flat-out poor run with nothing else to recommend.

So, to sum it up: you’ve got a long, ugly stretch of wind and chop, one golden hour on the afternoon of Sunday the 19th of July, and then back to the grinder. If you can wait, that Sunday arvo is the only move.

Stay patient, mate.
Rusty.

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