Indian River (Southside) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right now, it’s pretty gutless out there. We’ve got a long stretch of nothing doing, not a single wave worth paddling for until maybe the 23rd. That’s a solid week-plus of flatness and closeouts, so if you’re itching, don’t hold your breath.

Indian River (Southside) is looking at a whole lot of nothing from the 13th through the 22nd. Swell heights stay under 3 feet, periods are mostly short and weak, and the winds are all over the place—onshore, cross, or just messy. Combined energy stays in the weak zone, mostly between 26 and 60. It’s completely flat, not even a ripple worth sliding on.

Then on the 23rd, things finally start to wake up. Wednesday morning brings a bump to about 4 feet from the east, with a period around 7 seconds. It’s clean, offshore breeze from the southwest, and combined energy jumps to 240 – that’s moderate, and it’s actually surfable. The score is still low, but it’s the first real sign of life. That morning is your best early window. The afternoon gets a bit blown out with a fresh west wind at 30 km/h, but the morning should have some push.

Thursday the 24th is the standout. Morning sees around 5 feet from the east-northeast, period 8 seconds, with a gentle offshore west-northwest wind. Combined energy hits 248 – that’s the biggest and cleanest of the whole run. It’s still a beach/jetty setup, so with that shortish period it might be a bit crumbly, but for this stretch, that’s about as good as it gets. It’s not huge—fine for most surfers, maybe a little much for total beginners but not out of hand. By afternoon it drops to about 4 feet and the wind picks up a bit, but still offshore and clean.

After that, it fades. Friday the 25th has around 3 feet with a period of 9-10 seconds, clean cross-off northwesterlies, but energy drops to 178–191. It’s surfable but nothing to get fired up about. Saturday the 26th is similar, around 3 feet, still clean morning, energy down around 112. Sunday the 27th is weak again, around 2 feet, light winds, not much left.

One thing to note: the water’s running much warmer than usual for this time of year—about 5°F above average. That’s noticeable, and it might make the flat spells feel even more frustrating. But when the swell finally hits on the 24th, it’ll be warm and clean, just not for long.

So bottom line: don’t waste your time this week. Mark Wednesday the 23rd as a maybe, Thursday the 24th as your one real shot. After that, it’s back to the waiting game.

Rusty

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