Hanamizu River Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’m looking at the Hanamizu River forecast. For the next few days, things are looking pretty bleak. The river mouth is a sandbar setup, so it needs a decent push of swell and clean conditions to work, and we’re just not getting that for a while.

The water temperature is sitting at 80°, which is about normal for this time of year, so no drama there.

For the first few days, from Wednesday the 19th up through Sunday the 23rd, the swell is tiny—mostly under 2 feet—and the wind is cross-onshore or onshore from the south. The wave energy is weak (20 to 66 units), and the report keeps saying “poor surf conditions.” It’s just not happening. There’s a big gap of nothing worth paddling out for.

Come Monday the 24th, we start to see a pulse of longer-period swell (15 seconds) from the SSE, bumping the energy up to 326 units, but it’s still small at 3 feet and the wind is cross-onshore. The report calls it “marginal surf forecast or questionable tide conditions.” Still not worth racing down.

It’s not until Wednesday the 26th of August that we get a real standout. The morning session is the pick of the whole forecast. The swell is 4 feet from the south, with a super long period of 17 seconds, and the combined energy is a strong 1864 units. The wind is glassy—totally off—and the report says “excellent surf conditions for experienced surfers.” That’s the one. The water is glassy, the swell is packing real punch, and that long period will wrap nicely into the river mouth. Paddling out will be easier between sets, too. This is a proper session, but it’s for experienced folks.

The afternoon of the 26th is still okay with 7 feet swell from the south, but the wind turns light cross-onshore, and the report drops to “marginal.”

Thursday the 27th has some cleaner wind in the morning, but the swell is smaller and the energy is moderate (789 units). The afternoon is a write-off with heavy rain and onshore wind.

Friday the 28th morning is a big red flag. The swell is 13 feet from the south, and the combined energy is a massive 5057 units. The report says “the swell is predicted to be too big for this break.” That’s expert-only, and even then, it’s probably too much for the sandbar. Honestly, that setup might be more interesting for kite surfers than paddle surfers.

After that, the swell drops back down into the 5-foot to 8-foot range through the end of August and into early September, with mostly marginal conditions and cross-onshore wind. The energy is moderate to strong, but the quality just isn’t there. The best long-range potential is the morning of Tuesday the 1st of September, with 8 feet swell from the SSE, a 15-second period, and light cross-shore wind. The energy is 2712 units. That’s one to watch, but it’s a long way out and could change.

So, to sum it up: the only true standout is Wednesday morning the 26th of August. Glassy, solid south swell, long period, and the river mouth should be working. Everything else is a wait-and-see or a park on the beach.

Rusty.

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