Irmas/Leftpoint Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get real about what’s coming up for Irmas/Leftpoint.

To be straight with you: this is a tough stretch. We’ve got a solid 16-day window ahead, but it opens into a messy picture. The winds for the first week are relentless—strong, cross-shore, and onshore—churning up lumpy, cross-chop conditions. The water temperature is 81°F with a small positive anomaly of 0.5°F, meaning it’s pretty standard for late August, nothing out of the ordinary.

The opening run from Sunday the 23rd through about Tuesday the 27th is a write-off. The combined swell energy is weak to moderate (values from 528 to 737), the swell is short-period at 7 seconds, and the 22–25 mph cross-winds ruin any chance of clean faces. This is beach-and-reef setup, but with the wind and chop, honestly looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

We start to see a shift on Thursday morning the 27th. A new longer-period groundswell from the S shows up at 4ft and 17 seconds, and the combined energy jumps to 1028. Problem remains: the wind is still cross and strong at 22 mph, so the surf stays lumpy and marginal. A couple of sessions on Friday the 28th are the same story—S swell around 3–3ft fading, but that ENE wind just won’t let go.

Then a gap appears. From Saturday the 29th all the way through Tuesday morning the 3rd of September, it’s back to short-period ENE slop with energy fluctuating in the moderate range (438–1355). All cross-wind, all messy. I can't recommend you paddle out here. That’s nearly a full week of nothing.

The highlight, if you can call it that, begins late on Thursday the 3rd of September and through the weekend of the 6th–7th. Look towards the 4th of September Friday afternoon: a longer-period ENE swell at 7ft and 12 seconds hits with strong wave energy (1588). The wind remains cross though, so it’s far from clean. Saturday the 5th morning shows a similar 7ft ENE swell (12 seconds, energy 1616) with a cross NE breeze. It’s marginal—there are lines there, but the wind still messes with the surface.

Sunday the 6th of September brings the biggest pulse of the whole forecast: 10ft ENE swell with 12 seconds in the morning, energy blowing up to 2798. That’s proper strong energy. Problem is, at 10ft this is expert-only territory. For Irmas/Leftpoint, a long-period groundswell like this from the ENE often works best at this reef and point setup, but the cross wind (19 mph) means you won’t get the perfection you’d hope for. On Monday the 7th it drops back to 8ft with a shorter period of 9 seconds, but the cross-wind remains. Only marginal at best.

There is no standout session in this 16-day window that I’d call a winner. The swell direction (ENE) doesn’t match the optimum ESE direction for Irmas/Leftpoint, and on top of that, the persistent cross-wind kills the quality. Crowds are possible here, but with conditions this average, it won’t be packed. Honestly, if you’re jonesing for a wave, Saturday the 5th or Sunday the 6th offer the most size and energy, but only for experienced surfers who can handle a lumpy, cross-wind 7–10ft face.

Rusty.

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