Onjuku Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the table for Onjuku. Gotta be straight with you – the next couple of weeks are looking pretty grim. There's a big, empty gap at the start here; we don't have any surf worth paddling out for until the morning of Wednesday the 22nd, and even then it's just scraping a pass. Basically, the next 6 days are a write-off.

Water temp's sitting around 78°, which is about average for this time of year, so at least you won't be freezing while you're sitting there waiting for nothing.

Let's run through it. The first flicker of life shows up on Wednesday the 22nd morning, with a 4ft easterly swell. The wind's coming from the NE at 12 mph, which gives us a cross-off breeze – that's the only reason it's even worth a mention, because it'll keep the surface clean. The wave energy is moderate (255), but honestly, the swell period is a short 10 seconds and the conditions are still described as marginal. Honestly, not one to get excited about.

The only real standout in this whole 16-day window is Thursday morning the 23rd. We've got a clean 4ft E swell rolling in with a 10-second period, and the wind is a nice cross-off breeze from the ENE at 9 mph. Wave energy is moderate (282), and for the first time in ages, the data says we can "expect good surf conditions". This is your best shot, plain and simple. The swell direction from the E isn't a perfect match for the optimum SSE at Onjuku, but with clean conditions, it'll be the most rideable wave on offer. It's a long way out, so don't book the day off just yet, but keep an eye on it.

After that, things get messy again. The morning of Sunday the 26th sees a tiny 2ft SE swell, but with a nice light cross-off breeze from the NNE. The wave energy is moderate (244), and it's clean, but it's barely a ripple. Later that day and into Monday the 27th, there's a bump in size to 4ft from the SSE, but the period stretches out to 14 seconds. That's a long-period groundswell, which can be tricky at a beach break like Onjuku – tends to wall up and close out. The wind is light, so it won't be choppy, but the data calls it "marginal".

The last week just falls apart. Stiff onshore winds and building chop dominate from the 29th onward. Even a pulse of 5ft SSW swell on the morning of the 29th comes with a 16 mph cross-onshore wind and a choppy surface – that's expert-only, borderline unrideable, and might be more fun for the kite crew than a paddler. A late pulse on the 31st brings a 3ft ESE swell with a very long 14-second period, but it's being hammered by a 22 mph cross-onshore breeze. Forget it.

Bottom line: You've got one morning to chase – Thursday the 23rd. Everything else is a tough slog.

Rusty

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