Onjuku Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ll be straight with you – this stretch at Onjuku is a bit of a slow burn. We’ve got a solid 16-day window, but there’s a real gap at the start. The first few days are pretty much a write-off, with poor surf conditions and messy cross-onshore winds messing things up. It’s not until Thursday the 23rd that we start to see a glimmer, and even then, it’s just small, clean surf but nothing to write home about. The real action kicks off around Monday the 27th and Tuesday the 28th, but then it gets blown out again by strong winds from the 29th onwards. So, there’s a long wait for a very short window of goodness.

Water temp is sitting at 78°, which is pretty much bang on average for the time of year, so no surprises there.

The best of the lot, the standout, is Tuesday the 28th in the morning. That’s the one you want to circle. Swell from the South at 4ft, with a solid 14-second period – that’s proper groundswell energy. It’s got a combined energy of 861 (moderate), and with a light cross-off shore breeze from the ENE, it’s going to be clean. It’s a bit of a tease though, because the afternoon gets a bit lumpy with a cross-shore wind. Even so, that morning session is the best call of the whole forecast.

The Monday afternoon before that, the 27th, is also worth a paddle. Swell from the SE at 2ft, 10-second period, and clean cross-off winds. Combined energy of 252 (moderate). It’s small, but it’ll be a fun little session.

Now, a few things to keep in mind. Onjuku is inconsistent, so don’t expect it to fire every day. It’s also an exposed beach, and the optimum swell direction is SSE, so the South and SSE swells we get later in the window are a good match. However, the bigger swells on the 29th and 30th – up to 6ft – are all blown out by strong onshore winds, so it’s just a mess. For a beginner, anything over 5ft is a bit much, and that 6ft is only for the experienced crew, but with the wind howling, it’s not really surfable for anyone.

For the rest of the second week, from the 29th onwards, it’s a case of watching the wind. There’s a lot of energy in the water – combined energy readings over 1000 in places (strong) – but the onshore winds make it sloppy. The 2nd of August has a little bit of hope with lighter winds, but it’s still marginal.

So, to sum it up: wait until Monday the 27th for a small clean window, and then attack Tuesday the 28th morning. After that, it’s a waiting game for the next decent pulse.

Rusty.

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