Harlyn Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, let’s get real about Harlyn for the next couple weeks. The finder’s not giving us much to work with—pretty much a flat spell with a few flickers that just don’t line up.

First up, the overall picture: We’re looking at a pretty grim run. There’s not a single standout session here. The water temps are running about 66°F with a 4°F anomaly, so that’s a touch warmer than normal for this time of year around here, but it’s small comfort when the surf is this lacklustre.

Friday 28 August kicks off with tiny 1 ft swell from the WNW, a 19-22 mph cross-off wind, and the combined energy is weak at 21. It’s rain showers and poor conditions—honestly, not worth paddling out.

Saturday 29 August sees a bump of energy. Morning has 5 ft SW swell with a clean offshore S wind at 22 mph and moderate energy (182). The afternoon jumps to 8 ft WSW swell, period dropping to 7 seconds, and strong to very strong energy (1039), but the wind swings to a messy 28 mph cross-shore—only for experts, and even then the conditions are poor.

Sunday 30 August morning offers the closest to a maybe: 5 ft W swell, 9-second period, SSW offshore at 16 mph, and moderate energy (348). They call it “surfable but very ordinary.” Not great, not terrible, but far from a standout. The afternoon goes downhill with rain and cross-off wind.

Monday 31 August pushes 8 ft in the morning, but it’s cross-on wind, lumpy, and just poor. The energy is very strong (1085), but the quality isn’t there for paddle surfing.

Tuesday 1 September through Sunday 6 September is a long stretch of weak to moderate energy, tiny waves, and mostly poor conditions. The best of a bad bunch is Thursday 3 September morning: 6 ft W swell, 8-second period, cross-off SW wind at 16 mph, moderate energy (358), clean conditions—but it’s still only a 1 out of 10 in the guidance, so no real recommendation.

Monday 7 September has 7 ft W swell in the morning with gentle cross-shore wind (9 mph), moderate energy (402), but it’s marginal. The afternoon improves slightly to 6 ft with light cross-off and clean conditions (350), still just “surfable but ordinary.”

After that, from Tuesday 8 September onwards, the swell drops away hard, with energy values in the double digits and small period windswell from the NW. By Thursday 10 September, we’re down to 2 ft and 5-second periods—barely a ripple.

The bottom line: There’s no session in this 16-day window that I’d genuinely recommend. If you’re desperate, maybe sneak out Thursday 3 September morning or Monday 7 September afternoon for some clean 6 ft waves, but don’t expect anything special. Given Harlyn is a sheltered, inconsistent spot, this kind of blank run isn’t unusual. Forecasts can change, but right now, I’d leave the board at home and maybe look up at the wind—if it strengthens, this setup might be more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Stay patient.
– Rusty

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