Inside Reef (Hikkaduwa) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, it's Rusty here. Look, I've been staring at the charts for a while, and I gotta be straight with you – it's a tough run ahead for the Hikkaduwa area. The whole sixteen-day window is a real struggle, with barely a glimmer of something decent. There's a big gap of nothing good right from the start, and you'll be waiting a full seven days before we even see a hint of a "marginal" call.

We're starting on Friday the 14th of August, and honestly, it's grim. Inside Reef (Hikkaduwa) is getting a mix of weak cross-onshore winds, storm risks, and the water temp is sitting at 82°F, pretty much spot on average for this time of year. The swell on Friday morning is a weak 3ft from the SSE with a short period of 11 seconds, but it's just messy. By the afternoon, there's a bit more size from the SW, but the wind is straight onshore. Don't even bother paddling out for the next week. Saturday and Sunday see the swell get a little bigger from the west, but it's short-period and choppy. The combined energy is moderate (887 on Friday), but the quality is junk.

Monday the 17th brings a glimmer of hope with a very long-period groundswell from the SSW (22 seconds!) but it's still cross-onshore and messy. The energy jumps up (1525) on Monday afternoon, but it's only rated as marginal. Here’s the thing – that long period is going to make the reef setup more interesting, but the wonky wind direction will ruin it. By Tuesday the 18th, the swell really kicks up to a solid 7ft from the SSW with a long 19-second period. The energy is strong (4136), but again, it's cross-onshore and choppy. For an advanced spot like this, getting blown out when the swell is that powerful is a real kick in the guts. It's too big for beginners at 7ft, and only for experts. The wind never really cleans up, staying cross-onshore or onshore for almost the entire run.

Wednesday the 19th has a similar story – 7ft SSW swell with heaps of energy (3623), but the same old wind story. You might get a slightly cleaner look on Thursday the 20th morning as the wind is just onshore, but the surf is still classified as poor. Into the second week, from Friday the 21st of August onwards, it's all just marginal or poor. The swell drops a bit (5ft to 6ft) and the energy stays moderate, but those windy, stormy conditions just won't let up. Even by Tuesday the 25th of August, when we get a "gentle breeze" from the west with a 5ft SSW swell and a period of 16 seconds (1407 energy), it's still only marginal. The crowd factor here can be a problem, but with conditions this rough, the lineup will be empty for good reason.

If you're really itching for something, the very best of a bad bunch is probably Monday afternoon the 17th or Tuesday the 18th, where the sheer size and power of the SSW groundswell will be on offer, but you'll have to deal with choppy, cross-onshore faces. It's not a stand-out, it's just less terrible than the rest. For the most part, this looks more like a set-up for a kite session than a proper surf.

Stay patient, mate. It’s a long wait.

Rusty.

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