Inside Reef (Hikkaduwa) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Gotta be straight with you – this next fortnight at Inside Reef looks like a proper heartbreaker. We’ve got some serious size and energy rolling in, but that damn wind is gonna ruin it.

First up, the good news. The water temp is sitting at a balmy 84°, which is pretty much spot-on for this time of year, so you won’t need a wetsuit. The energy in the water is seriously burly, especially from July 10th onwards. We're looking at combined energy readings of between 1215 and 2485 (strong to very strong wave energy) across many of the sessions. That’s a whole lotta juice. The optimum swell is from the southwest, and we do see some decent-looking SSW groundswell pulses, like on Thursday afternoon July 9th with a 5ft swell but a very long 16-second period from the SSW.

But here’s the kicker. The wind is just a bastard for the entire run. For the first week and a half it’s cross-on from the west, blowing at 12 to 16 mph, and it’s making a proper mess of the lineup. The wave comment on almost every single session says “poor surf conditions” or “marginal surf.” That wind is chopping everything up. There are a couple of sessions late in the run, like the morning of July 20th, where the swell jumps to 5ft from the SSW with a 18-second period and combined energy of 2485, but it’s still being hammered by a 16 mph cross-on breeze. It’ll look like a washing machine.

What about a standout?
Man, there’s no true standouts here. If you are an absolute expert and desperate, the best bet is probably the afternoon of Thursday July 9th. You’ve got a 5ft SSW groundswell with a long 16-second period, and while it’s still cross-on, the wind drops a little to 12 mph. The energy is high at 1833. Because it’s a reef break, that long period swell should hold up better than at a beachie. It’s an advanced break and it can be inconsistent, and crowd’s are possible, but for a reef break getting that kind of energy and a slightly less ugly wind, it’s your only real chance of a halfway decent wave in this whole window.

For the rest of the time? Honestly, from July 8th through July 23rd, it’s pretty much a washout. A solid 7ft S swell rolls in on the morning of Tuesday July 21st, but the wind is screaming cross-on at 19 mph. That setup looks far better for a kite surfer than a paddle surfer. This is a really tough stretch for Inside Reef.

-Rusty

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