Lincoln City Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for the next couple of weeks down at Lincoln City.

Straight up, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it – this is a tough run. The whole 16-day window looks pretty lacklustre, and there’s not a single standout session that I’d paddle out for with any real enthusiasm. The water is also incredibly cold, sitting at 53° right now, which is a whopping 6° colder than usual for this time of year. That’s a serious anomaly, so you’ll be wanting a thick steamer and booties without question.

We start off on Monday, August 3rd, with a NW swell around 5ft, but the period is a short 7 seconds, and the wind is a cross-shore breeze at 9 mph. The combined energy is moderate, at 311, but the wave comment says it all – poor surf conditions. It’s a similar story all week. By Tuesday and Wednesday, the swell holds around 5ft to 6ft from the NW, but that cross-shore wind picks up to 12-16 mph, creating a cross-chop and messy lines. The wave energy gets a bit stronger by Wednesday afternoon, hitting 453, but with the wind direction being cross or cross-on, it’s just not clean. Thursday morning, August 6th, sees a slight drop to 4ft, and we get a light cross-onshore breeze at 6 mph, which is the closest we get to a “marginal” call, but honestly, it’s still not one to get excited about.

The following weekend and into the second week, August 9th through the 10th, the swell drops right off to a tiny 1ft. It’s a long-period groundswell coming from the SW at 16 seconds, which is a nice clean period, but there’s just no height. The combined energy is weak, down at 116. That’s not surfable.

There’s a bit of a pulse that tries to build around Tuesday, August 11th, with a W swell bumping up to 5ft. The combined energy gets a solid 481, which is moderate to strong, but the wind is cross-onshore again, and the period is a short 9 seconds. It’s just not gonna be open-faced. The rest of that week stays small, with heights mostly under 4ft, and the wind stays stubbornly cross or cross-onshore.

The final few days, from August 15th to the 18th, we see a bit of a long-period signal from the WNW with periods of 16-17 seconds, but the swell height is only 2ft. The energy readings are actually quite high for the size – 612 on the 15th afternoon – which means there’s a lot of push, but it’s just too small to be worth paddling out for. The last day, Tuesday August 18th, shows a 4ft W swell with a 13-second period and a light cross-onshore wind, giving a moderate energy of 612. It’s marked as marginal, but with the wind being slightly onshore, it’s a "maybe" for the die-hards, not a solid recommendation.

Overall, this is a real quiet spell for Lincoln City. The wind is consistently problematic, and the swell is either too small, too short-period, or both. Don’t hold your breath for anything good in the next two weeks.

- Rusty

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