Inchydoney Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get real about Inchydoney for the next 16 days. Honestly, we’re looking at a pretty grim run overall. Most days are a write-off with poor conditions, and there’s a long stretch where you’d be wasting your time. But hang in there, because there’s one morning that might just save the trip.

Inchydoney is a river mouth setup, sheltered and best with a SW swell, but it’s inconsistent. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing weird going on there.

The first week is a dead loss. From Tuesday the 25th right through to the end of the month, it’s all messy wind and tiny, weak swells. You’ve got a mix of cross-off and cross winds but the wave heights barely tickle 3 ft, and the energy is pathetic—mostly under 100 (like 35 to 111) for the combined swell energy. Periods are short, under 8 seconds, so it’s just wind slop. Not worth paddling out.

Friday morning the 28th gives us a little flicker: 3 ft from the S with a cross-off breeze and it’s clean. But again, short period (7 seconds) and weak energy (90), so it’s barely surfable. Saturday and Sunday the 29th and 30th see a jump in size—4 ft to 6 ft—but the wind is cross or cross-on and strong, messing it all up. The energy climbs (227 to 398) but the quality is shocking. By Monday the 31st and into September, it’s still cross-shore and lumpy, with 5 ft to 7 ft and energy up to 554, but the wind is a killer. Honestly, that setup is looking more like a kite session than a paddle day.

Now, the standout – and the only one I’d get excited about – is Tuesday the 8th of September morning. Inchydoney finally lines up. We’ve got a 5 ft swell from the SW with a long period of 14 seconds (that’s proper groundswell). The wind is cross-off from the NE at 12 mph, so it’ll be clean. Combined energy is massive at 1246 – that’s strong, powerful water moving. This is for experienced surfers only, over 8 ft? No, it’s 5 ft, but with that period and energy, it’ll have push. The downside: long-period SW swell at a river mouth can be a bit straight, but the direction matches the optimum, and clean conditions make it the clear winner. Crowds are possible here sometimes, but on a random Tuesday morning in September you might score it quiet.

After that, the run fades again. Wednesday the 9th morning has 3 ft from the WSW with clean conditions, but it’s weak (168 energy) and not worth making plans for.

So the best call is that Tuesday the 8th of September morning. Mark it, keep an eye on it, and pray the wind holds. Everything else is either too small, too messy, or just plain ugly. It’s been a blank run for a while, but that one window could be a gem.

Rusty.

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