New Brighton Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s coming up for New Brighton Beach. It's a bit of a slow burner, but there's some light at the end of the tunnel.

Right now, the 16-day window kicks off on Thursday the 23rd of July, but don't bother paddling out just yet. The first few days are a write-off. Thursday morning has a tiny 2.0ft swell from the NE with a period of only 4 seconds – that’s barely a ripple. The combined energy is a weak 21. The water is sitting at 49.5°, which is about average for the time of year. Friday and Saturday aren't much better; we’ve got strong winds that are either onshore or just too strong to make it fun. Saturday morning even sees a 0.7ft swell with a 25 mph offshore wind, which is a nightmare to paddle into.

We’ve got a gap of poor conditions until Sunday the 26th of July. The surf is still small, around 1.6ft to 2.0ft, but the wind finally turns favourable. Sunday morning is clean with a light offshore breeze from the WSW, and the wave energy is starting to build (197). The swell is coming from the E with a period of 15 seconds – that’s a long period groundswell, which means better shaped waves, longer gaps between sets, and easier paddling. It’s still small, but it’s clean. Monday the 27th keeps that trend going with glassy conditions in the afternoon and a combined energy of 259.

Now for the standout. Tuesday the 28th of July is the first real highlight. The morning session is where it’s at. We’ve got a 3.9ft swell from the E (14-second period), a clean cross-offshore breeze from the WNW, and the combined energy jumps to 590 – that’s moderate but solid. The water is still around 49.5°, and the conditions are described as "clean." This is a good call for a longboard or a funboard. The afternoon turns a bit onshore, so get out early.

We then have a bit of a lull through the 29th and 30th, with onshore winds and smaller, weaker swell. The 31st of July morning pulls us back in with a light offshore and 2.0ft of ESE swell at 15 seconds, delivering 296 energy – a clean, fun little session.

The real fireworks start to show up in the first week of August. Sunday the 2nd of August sees a bump in size with 4.9ft to 5.2ft of SE swell, but the period drops to 8 seconds and the wind is onshore and choppy. That’s a messy one, and at 4.9ft+ it might be too much for beginners on a messy day.

The best of the entire forecast lands on the 7th of August – Friday morning. That’s over a week away, so treat it as a promising but not locked-in call. The swell is 4.9ft from the ESE, period 12 seconds, with a light cross-offshore breeze from the SW. The combined energy hits 790 – strong wave energy. Conditions are clean and the forecast says "very good surf conditions." This looks like the session to aim for. At 4.9ft, it’s a solid intermediate size. The wind is clean, and the 12-second period will give it some punch.

Given that New Brighton Beach is a fairly exposed beach break, that long period ESE swell on the 7th could be a bit straight. But with the cross-offshore wind, it should still hold shape nicely.

One last thing: the afternoon of the 2nd of August has 5.2ft of short-period, onshore chop. That setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Alright, I’m rusty. Catch you in the water.

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