Indian River (Southside) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let's be straight with you: this 16-day outlook for Indian River (Southside) is a bleak one. We've got a full run of "poor surf conditions" on every single time slot in the forecast, from now all the way through to Friday, August 14th. There's no surf worth paddling out for, so we're looking at a solid 16-day gap with zero recommendations.

Right off the bat, Thursday morning, July 30th, brings a tiny 2 ft swell from the SE with a short 8-second period. Wave energy is weak (33). It's cross-off with a moderate breeze from the NW at 16 mph, keeping things clean-looking, but there's just no push in the water. The water temp is sitting at 75°, which is pretty much average for the time of year with a tiny anomaly of +0.2°.

Moving through the end of July and into August, things don't improve. The swell stays small, between 0.7 ft and 2 ft, and the period rarely gets out of the short-range 6 to 8 seconds. The strongest energy we see is a modest 64 on the afternoon of August 7th, but that's paired with a 2 ft, 6-second S swell and a moderate cross-shore wind, leaving a cross-chop on the surface. Hardly worth getting damp for.

There are a few moments where the wind goes glassy or offshore, like the morning of August 8th with glassy conditions from a light WSW at 3 mph, but the swell is just a weak 2 ft from the S at 5 seconds with energy of only 21. It's clean as a whistle but barely a ripple. A similar situation on August 11th afternoon, again glassy with a 1 ft SSE swell.

Late in the second week, we see a slight nudge in size. August 12th brings 3 ft to 3 ft from the E, period still a short 5 seconds, but energy climbs to 51. Winds on the 12th afternoon are light cross-onshore, so it's not clean. On August 13th morning, it's glassy again with a solid-looking 2 ft E swell, but the 6-second period means it's not going to have any punch. The best energy we see in the whole run is 51 on the 12th afternoon.

Overall, this is a tough stretch. If you absolutely have to get wet, the cleanest, tiniest waves will be on those glassy mornings, but you'll be fighting for an ankle-snapper. With that tiny, weak swell and short periods, the set-up here might honestly be more interesting for a kite surfer than a paddle surfer right now. But the truth is, there's nothing for us. For an area like this, a blank run is not unusual when the conditions align against us. Forecasts can always change, but for now, keep the board in the rack.

Rusty.

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