Harlyn Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, crew, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – the next couple of weeks are looking pretty desperate for a proper paddle. We’ve got a long, flat stretch ahead before anything even remotely interesting shows its face. The short version: don’t get your hopes up for a decent session for a while.

The first real chance of a wave doesn’t come until the 12th of August, and even then it’s marginal. The surf that day is small, but there’s a tiny window with clean conditions and a bit more energy behind it. The water temp is sitting at about 65°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so you won’t need a thick suit. But that’s about the only positive.

From the start of the period through the first week, it’s all pretty grim. We see small, weak swells with cross-onshore winds and lumpy conditions, which is just frustrating. A couple of days have that glassy feel early on, but the swell is too small to even bother with. The energy is really weak – we’re looking at values in the double digits and low hundreds, which tells you there’s just nothing pushing through.

We’ve got a good stretch of no real surf from the 5th through the 11th. There’s a few knee-high blips, but nothing you’d get out of bed for. The winds are all over the place, and it’s mostly windy and messy anyway, so you’re not missing much.

Then, that little pulse on the 12th – still tiny, but the wind is offshore and it’s clean. The period is up a bit, so there’s some shape to it. The wave energy climbs to a moderate 122, but the swell height is just under three feet, so it’s only really a longboard or a foamie kind of day. For Harlyn (North Coast), which is sheltered and a beginner’s spot, it might be a fun little push, but it’s not going to set the world on fire.

After that, things go quiet again for a few more days. Then, hold on to your board, because the 17th of August is when we finally see some juice. The swell lights up – we’re talking a big jump in energy, values in the thousands, yeah, a proper pulse of WNW swell. The height is significant, way overhead. Now, the conditions aren't perfect – there’s a fresh cross-onshore wind making it lumpy, so it won't be a classic. It's big and powerful, but messy.

For a spot like Harlyn, which is sheltered and usually better for beginners, this is way too big and will be out of control. This swell is one for the experts only, and even then, the wind will make it a battle. The period is decent, so there’s a lot of water moving, but the wind will chop it up. It looks like a day for the big-wave crew, and honestly, with that wind, it might be more interesting for the kitesurfers than the paddle surfers. The energy reading on the 17th is a massive 4643, so there’s no shortage of power, but the quality just isn't there.

The following days see the swell drop back down to average, fun-size waves but again, the winds stay up and it stays choppy and cross-shore. It’s a frustrating end to the outlook. There’s a lot of water moving in that middle pulse, but the wind just wrecks it.

So, to sum it up, the 12th is a small, clean one for the loggers, but the real swell of the period is on the 17th – big and raw, only for those who know what they’re doing. It’s not a clean one, but it’s got some serious size. The rest is just a waiting game.

Stay stoked, but maybe bring a book.

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