Inside Reef (Hikkaduwa) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here, and I’ve got to be straight with you – the outlook for the next couple of weeks around Inside Reef (Hikkaduwa) is a bit of a downer. We’re looking at a long, quiet run with very little worth paddling out for. The whole 16-day window is pretty much a bust, with only a couple of days that even get close to being surfable, and even then, conditions are far from ideal. The water’s sitting at 84°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won’t need a steamer.

The biggest problem is the wind. It’s howling onshore from the west or west-southwest for the entire period, and that’s stinking out the waves. Thursday morning the 10th sees a bit of size, with the swell pushing 5 ft from the SSW, and that’s got some serious grunt behind it – a long 18-second period and combined swell energy of 1420 (moderate to strong). But that onshore breeze is just going to make it a messy, blown-out mess. It’s the same story Friday the 11th, with 5 ft of SSW swell at 15 seconds, energy at 2008 (strong), but it’s all for nothing with that wind.

Honestly, the only time things look half-decent is the morning of Sunday the 13th. The swell drops to a more manageable 6 ft from the SSW, period of 16 seconds, and that combined energy is 1586 (still strong). And here’s the kicker – the wind eases to a light breeze from the southwest, which is onshore but light enough that it might glass off a bit. That’s your best chance, but it’s still a “marginal” call. The reef will handle that long-period groundswell well, but don’t expect perfection. After that, we’re back to the same old story: strong onshore winds and poor conditions.

As for the second week, forget it. Tuesday the 15th throws up some big, ugly 8 ft to 10 ft west-southwest swell with a short period of 9-10 seconds, but it’s cross-onshore and choppy – that setup there looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. The rest of the week is just a steady stream of onshore wind and poor surf. There are no standouts. The best you can do is hope for that Sunday morning window, but even then, keep your expectations low. That’s it from me. Rusty out.

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