Houghton Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Houghton Bay over the next couple of weeks. Straight up, I gotta be honest with ya – it’s gonna be a proper test of patience. We’ve got a long stretch of grim conditions ahead before we finally get a decent window.

The first sniff of anything surfable is Thursday the 13th of August, but it’s barely a ripple. We’re looking at a tiny 1ft SSE swell with a period of 9 seconds, so not much push behind it. The wind is out of the NNE at 12 mph though, blowing offshore, so the surface will be clean. The water temp is sitting at 54°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, nothing wild there. You could get out for a splash, but it’s really just surfable, not good.

Then we hit a brutal dry spell. From Friday the 14th right through to Tuesday the 18th, it’s mostly onshore, windy, and downright messy. The swell does show up on Sunday the 16th, jumping to a proper 13ft to 13ft from the south, but with a screaming 31 mph southerly on it, it’s not surfable. That’s kite-surf territory, not for a paddle board. The combined energy hits 2848 (strong) but with those winds, it’s a no-go. Real shame.

We finally get a glimmer of hope by Thursday the 20th of August. This is the standout, the real highlight of this whole outlook. Thursday morning is where it’s at. A clean 6ft swell from the south with a nice long 12-second period – that’s proper groundswell energy with a combined energy reading of 1018 (strong). And the wind? Dead calm. Glassy as a mirror. That’s excellent surf for any experienced surfer. Houghton Bay is an exposed beach and reef setup, so that long-period south swell should wrap in nicely, but keep in mind it’s usually inconsistent here so you’ll have to wait for the sets. The crowd factor is listed as "sometimes", so you might have a few heads out, but nothing too hectic.

Thursday afternoon is still good, with the swell dropping slightly to 6ft, a light 6 mph north offshore wind keeping it clean. That’s another solid session.

After that, it fades off again. Friday the 21st offers some knee-high stuff around 4ft to 4ft with moderate offshore winds, but it’s marginal. From Saturday the 22nd onward, it’s pretty small and weak, with the combined swell energy dropping into the double digits (139 or less) – just not enough power to get excited about. There’s another spike on Tuesday the 25th with a 5ft S swell and a 12-second period, but the wind is screaming from the NNW at 25 mph. That makes it strong offshore and clean, but hard to actually paddle into and catch anything. Only for the most determined.

The rest of the month just kind of trickles away with tiny, weak swell and messy wind. No real standouts after that 20th.

So, to sum it up: if you’re gonna pick a day, make it Thursday the 20th of August. Get up early for that glassy, 6ft S groundswell. That’s the one. Everything else is a waiting game.

Rusty.

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