New Brighton Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, listen up. This is New Brighton Beach, and I’ll be straight with you—it’s a tough stretch ahead. The swell is on the small side for most of the run, and the quality is ordinary. There’s a little window of opportunity around Thursday morning, August 13th, but it’s not one for the faint-hearted. The water temp is sitting at 49°F, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

Thursday morning, August 13th—that’s your best bet. We’ve got a 7ft swell from the NE, with a period of just 8 seconds. That’s short-period, wind swell, so it’ll be a bit lumpy and not super clean. The wind is cross-on from the ENE at 6 mph, which adds some texture. The combined energy is sitting at 838, which is moderate, so there’s some push behind it. But honestly, it’s marginal—questionable tide conditions and only a 2/5 rating for the break. It’s inconsistent and best for beginners, but with that size, it might be a bit much for a total newbie. The crowds are sometimes there, so you might have some company. This is the only real standout, and it’s not a classic.

From Thursday afternoon onward, things drop off fast. Thursday afternoon gets glassy but only 4ft from the ENE, and the combined energy plummets to 160. That’s weak. Friday morning, August 14th, has a clean offshore wind from the WSW at 6 mph, but the swell is just 2ft from the E—tiny, with combined energy of 60. It’s surfable but very ordinary. The pattern continues through the weekend and into the following week: small waves (1ft to 2ft), mostly clean from offshore winds, but the energy is weak—often under 100. A few days have some glassy conditions, like Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, August 14th and 15th, but the swell is just too small to get excited about.

There’s a gap from Saturday, August 15th, through to Tuesday, August 19th, where the surf is either poor or just ordinary. Then on Wednesday morning, August 19th, we get a little spike: a 2ft SE swell with a long period of 16 seconds. That’s proper groundswell energy, and the combined energy reads 263, which is moderate. The wind is offshore from the WSW at 9 mph, so it’s clean. But the swell is still small—only 2ft—so it’s not going to be a day of big waves. The long period means better shaped waves but longer lulls between sets. It’s surfable, but only just.

After that, from Thursday, August 20th, all the way through to Wednesday, August 27th, the surf is consistently poor. Swells are tiny (0.3ft to 2ft), combined energy is mostly below 100, and the wind is often cross-on or onshore. There’s one morning on Thursday, August 27th, with a clean offshore wind and 3ft from the NNE, but the period is only 4 seconds—that’s just wind chop. The energy is 51, weak. It’s not worth paddling out for.

Finally, Friday morning, August 28th, we get a slight improvement: 3ft from the ENE with a period of 9 seconds, combined energy at 162, and a clean offshore wind from the WSW at 9 mph. The afternoon is similar with 2ft and moderate offshore wind. But it’s still small and ordinary.

So here’s the bottom line: Thursday morning, August 13th, is your only real shot, and it’s marginal. For the rest of the 16 days, it’s a flat spell with small, weak waves. If you’re desperate, bring a log and enjoy the clean air, but don’t expect any barrels. The break is a beach, and with the small swell and strong winds on some days, it might be more interesting for kite surfers than paddle surfers. Keep an eye on the forecasts, but don’t hold your breath.

Rusty.

Read more