Lincoln City Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright crew, Rusty here. Let's break down the next couple of weeks at Lincoln City. I'll be honest, it's a bit of a mixed bag. The water is sitting at 54°F, which is about 5°F colder than what's normal for this time of year, so it's much colder than usual.

We kick off the first week with a tough start. On Monday the 6th of July, we're looking at a messy 6ft NW windswell rolling in. The period is short at 7 seconds, and with a 15 km/h cross-onshore breeze, it's choppy. Combined wave energy is moderate (496). It's a poor scene. Tuesday the 7th and Wednesday the 8th stay marginal. Swell drops to 4ft and 2ft, with that persistent cross-onshore wind keeping things bumpy. Thursday the 9th and Friday the 10th offer some smaller waves at 2-3ft, but the quality is still poor to marginal, with only a light breeze on Friday morning. Saturday the 11th shows a little improvement – 4ft from the WNW with a 9-second period, but it's still a cross-offshore wind and looks only marginally better.

Into the second week, things don't dramatically improve. Sunday the 12th has a 5ft NW swell, but the wind is onshore and bumpy. The energy stays moderate in the 500-600 range. Monday the 13th and Tuesday the 14th are a write-off for good waves, with poor conditions again. There's a tiny glimpse on the 15th of July (Wednesday) with a 2ft swell from the WNW but a very long period of 21 seconds. That's interesting, but the combined energy is moderate (511) and conditions are flagged as marginal.

Looking further out, we get a proper pulse of swell arriving around the 19th of July (Sunday). We're looking at 6ft from the NNW, but with only a 7-second period. This pushes the combined energy up to 553, but it's still a short-period windswell, and the wind is cross-onshore. It will be a bit grindy and lumpy. By the 20th of July (Monday) and 21st of July (Tuesday), the swell is holding around 6-7ft from the NNW, but the wind goes cross-shore at 20-25 km/h, which cleans it up a touch. Still, with a period of 7-8 seconds, it's not the long, lined-up stuff we dream of. The energy stays moderate (612-730).

So, if I'm picking the best on offer, it's a toss-up between a couple of marginal windows. The Thursday morning of the 16th of July is the first standout, with a 2ft WNW groundswell (19-second period) and a light 10 km/h cross-onshore breeze. The energy is moderate (546) but that long period could make for some clean, if small, lines on a reef or point. Then, the real standout is the Monday and Tuesday, the 20th and 21st of July. The swell jumps up to 6-7ft, the wind is cross-shore, and while the short period (7-8 seconds) won't give you the best shape, it's the biggest, most consistent surf of the whole outlook. For a beach-and-reef setup like Lincoln City, 7ft with a cross-shore wind becomes a game for experienced surfers only – the current and power will be serious. Beginners should sit this one out. For the rest of the run? It's a lot of waiting for a clean session that never quite shows.

Rusty.

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