Banks Peninsula - Hickory Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s cooking at Hickory Bay.

It’s a quiet start to the outlook, but things begin to shape up on Friday afternoon, the 14th of August. We’ve got a clean 4ft swell rolling in from the NE with a short 8-second period, and the wind is dead flat – glassy conditions. The water is sitting at 51°, a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, which is a nice little bonus. The combined swell energy is moderate (233). It’s a beginner-friendly wave, so a good one to get the feet wet again.

Saturday morning the 15th drops right off with a tiny 2ft SSW swell, but the period jumps to a very long 17 seconds. That’s proper groundswell, but with a cross-on SW breeze at 6 mph, it’s not clean, and the energy is ramping up (352). By Saturday afternoon, strong onshore winds ruin it completely. Sunday is a write-off with howling onshore winds and building, messy swell. Monday the 17th actually sees a bump in size to 5ft – 6ft from the SSW, but again, it’s cross-on and lumpy, so it’s not a session to get excited about.

The real standout, the one you’ve been waiting for, is Thursday afternoon, the 20th of August. The wind goes glassy, from the E at just 3 mph, and we’ve got a clean 6ft S swell with a 12-second period. The combined energy is solid (908), and the conditions are lined up for a very good session. The water is still a touch warmer than normal, and the cross-off wind Friday morning the 21st keeps it clean with a 4ft S swell. Then Friday afternoon on the 21st is another beauty – glassy calm, 4ft SSW groundswell with a 13-second period, and the energy is good (595). This is the best two-day window.

Saturday the 22nd is still clean with offshore winds, but the swell drops to 3ft. After that, a long gap of poor conditions hits until the next real highlight. The wind turns fresh offshore on the 23rd, but the swell is tiny (2ft) and weak.

Skip ahead to Thursday morning, the 27th of August. This is a big one for experienced surfers. The swell hits 5ft from the S with a monster 19-second period, light offshore winds, and the combined energy is strong (1617). That’s a very long-period groundswell, so it’s going to be powerful and clean, but it’ll be more suited to the points and reefs than a beach break. The water is still a touch warmer than normal. The afternoon on the 27th stays clean with a 4ft SSW swell, but the period drops to 16 seconds. Friday the 28th morning is still very good, with a clean 4ft S swell before the wind picks up.

The rest of the run into the 29th looks like a return to onshore, lumpy conditions.

So, your best bets are Thursday afternoon the 20th and Friday afternoon the 21st for the cleanest, most user-friendly waves, and Thursday morning the 27th for the experienced crew looking for some serious, long-period power.

Rusty.

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