Little Makaha Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ll be straight with you – the next couple of weeks are looking pretty flat and ordinary for most spots around here. We’ve got a long stretch of tiny, weak swell and persistent cross-off winds that’ll keep things messy. The good news is there’s a small window of cleaner, rideable waves early on, but after that, it’s a real struggle to find anything worth paddling out for.

The first bit of action worth mentioning kicks off on Wednesday morning, August 19th, at Little Makaha. It’s a reef break, consistent, and fairly exposed to the swell. The water temp is sitting at 80°, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there. We’re looking at a tiny 1 ft swell from the southwest, with a very long period of 16 seconds. That’s a groundswell, so it’ll have some push, but the energy is weak (100). The wind is a light 9 mph cross-off from the northeast, which is actually decent for a clean surface. The waves are surfable, but the conditions are very ordinary – it’s just not firing. If you’re a beginner, this is your window, but don’t expect much.

Thursday morning, August 20th, is probably the pick of the whole forecast. The swell is still tiny at 1 ft, but it’s from the southwest with a very long period of 18 seconds, and the combined energy picks up a bit to moderate (128). The wind drops to a light 6 mph cross-off from the east-northeast, which makes for a clean, glassy feel. It’s still small, but for a desperate session, this is as good as it gets. The direction is from the southwest, which is a bit off the optimum northwest direction for this spot, so it’s not breaking perfectly, but you’ll get a few waves if you’re patient.

From Friday afternoon, August 21st, through the rest of the 16 days, it’s a write-off. The wind picks up to 15–25 mph from the east-northeast, staying cross-off and gusty, and the swell drops to 0.7–1 ft, mostly from the northwest or west with periods falling to 10–12 seconds. The combined energy plummets into the 10–40 range, so it’s barely moving. The water is still warm, but the conditions are consistently poor. There’s a chance of a slightly bigger pulse around the 30th of August (1 ft from the southwest, period 16 seconds, energy 55), but it’s still tiny and the wind will be a fresh 19 mph cross-off. It’s simply not worth the paddle.

If you’re a beginner, the first few days might be okay for a gentle float, but for anyone wanting a proper wave, this is a quiet spell. The setup is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing during the stronger winds later on. Honestly, keep an eye on the forecast – it’s flat now, but it’ll change.

Rusty.

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