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

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about the next couple of weeks. I’m gonna be straight with you—this is a tough forecast for Gold Beach. Honestly, it’s a struggle. The whole 16-day run is pretty grim, and it takes a while to even get a sniff of something that might be okay. There’s a long stretch of poor conditions right from the start, through Tuesday the 21st and all the way into the weekend. The wind is almost always on it or cross, and the wave quality is suffering because of it.

Now, on Tuesday morning, July 21st, we’ve got a tiny 2ft swell from the SW, but it’s a long period groundswell of 16s, which is nice for shape, but the wind is cross-on from the NNW at 9 mph, and it’s just choppy. The water is a frigid 52°, which is a massive 5° colder than normal for this time of year – that’s going to feel way colder than usual. The combined energy is weak (368). It’s a no-go.

Wednesday and Thursday are the same story – tiny, messy, onshore winds. The swell stays around 2ft to 3ft, and the period drops, so it’s just a lumpy, short-period mess. Everything is marked as poor.

The first real glimmer of hope, and it’s still a very faint one, comes on Saturday, July 25th. The swell picks up to 3ft to 3ft, from the SW, with a long period of 21s. That’s a proper groundswell. The combined energy jumps to a moderate 851-930. The wind is light, from the SW, and it’s cross-on, so there’s still a bit of ripple, but it’s the best we’ve seen. It’s still only marginal, but if you’re desperate for a paddle, Saturday afternoon might just have a clean, lined-up set or two. The south-west swell direction is right for the break, so that’s a positive.

Sunday the 26th through Monday the 27th sees a bit more size (3ft) but the wind turns back to a cross-on NW breeze, and the energy is still moderate. It’s still marginal for a surf, but it’s not good.

Then from Tuesday the 28th onwards, things go downhill again. The wind howls from the NNW, hitting 19 to 25 mph, making a plain mess of things. The swell turns into a short-period, wind-driven affair from the NNW. By the time we get into the first week of August, the swell is coming from the north-west, with a tiny period of 6-8 seconds, and the wind is still strong and cross-shore. This is pure frustration. The whole setup is way more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. The combined energy is weak to moderate, but it’s all wind chop.

The one thing that stands out as the *least bad* option on offer is the Saturday, 25th July afternoon. It’s the only time the long period groundswell and the light wind line up for a moment. Don’t expect much, but that’s the pick of a very poor lot.

Rusty.

Read more