Inchydoney Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks. Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – the outlook for the next couple of weeks around Inchydoney is a real struggle. The data is telling us what we’re already feeling: there’s nothing on the table that’s recommendable. We’ve got a long, dry spell of poor surf conditions stretching from today, the 21st of August, all the way through to the 5th of September. That’s a solid 16-day gap with no real surf to chase.

The water temp is sitting at 65°, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year, but that’s about the only bright spot.

For the first few days, we’re seeing tiny swell, mostly around 0.3 ft to 0.4 ft with a decent period of 13-16 seconds, but the combined energy is weak (68 to 108). The wind is offshore or cross-offshore, which would normally be a dream, but with zero wave height, it’s just a glassy, flat ocean. Friday morning the 21st has a clean 0.3 ft from the SSW with a smooth 13-second period, but you’d be surfing ankle-biters. Saturday and Sunday the 22nd and 23rd are similar – small, clean, but utterly underwhelming.

By the 24th, we get a shift. Monday morning the 24th has a bit more energy (110) but still only 0.4 ft, and it’s clean. Then Monday afternoon the wind goes cross-shore, and we get a weak, short-period 1 ft from the SE (6 seconds) that’s just a lumpy mess. Tuesday the 25th is more of the same – short-period, cross-shore junk.

The end of August and start of September sees a spike in size, but it’s all wind-affected. On the 26th, we have 2 ft from the SSW but onshore winds at 30 mph, making it a choppy, poor session. The 27th is a write-off with fresh cross-shore winds. The 28th brings a 1 ft WSW swell, but again, fresh cross-shore winds ruin it.

The biggest swell shows up on the 1st and 2nd of September. Tuesday the 1st has a 3 ft SSW swell, but it’s onshore and messy, with a combined energy of 707 – that’s a lot of power, but you’ll be fighting the wind. Wednesday the 2nd sees 3 ft from the WSW with a 10-second period and a combined energy of 1154, which is strong. The morning is cross-onshore and choppy, but the afternoon turns cross-offshore with a fresh breeze, so it cleans up. That afternoon session is the one glimpse of something decent, but the reports still call it “poor surf conditions.” At 3 ft, that’s big, powerful stuff meant only for experienced surfers.

The very end of the run, on the 3rd and 4th of September, we get a classic clean-up. Friday the 4th morning has a 1 ft SW swell with a 6-second period, but the wind is offshore at 20 mph. The data says “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions,” so it’s not a total loss, but it’s nothing to get excited about.

Inchydoney is a sheltered river mouth that rarely picks up good swell anyway, so this blank run, while frustrating, is more normal for the area. The setup here is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing when the wind and swell combine like this. Hang tight, folks. Forecasts can change, but for now, this is a solid “stay home and watch the cams” period.

- Rusty

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