Oswald State Park/Short Sands Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here again, looking at what we’ve got over the next 16 days for our stretch. To be straight with you, it’s not a great outlook. The first surfable day doesn’t pop up until Saturday the 11th for Oswald State Park/Short Sands, and from there it’s pretty much a battle with the wind.

The wave heights generally run from about 3 ft to 5 ft, coming in from the WNW and NW. For a beginner spot, that’s a fine size, but the wind just doesn’t cooperate. It’s almost always blowing cross or cross-onshore. That means the surface is going to be lumpy and choppy, with the combined swell energy hanging in the moderate range (mostly between 200 and 600). Almost every session is flagged as poor because of that wind.

The water temperature here is about what you’d expect for the middle of July, nothing unusual.

If you’re looking for the best moment, maybe Thursday the 16th morning. You get the biggest swell of the stretch at a touch under 5 ft from the WNW, with the energy hitting 631 (moderate). But that NW wind at 12 mph blowing cross-onshore puts a chop on it. It’s not going to be clean. A couple days later, on Friday the 17th, the swell drops to around 3 ft but the period jumps to 17 seconds – that’s a serious groundswell. The problem is the wind is still onshore at 9 mph, so the wave quality won’t be what you’d hope for. That long period will leave long waits between sets, which isn't ideal for the beach break here.

Towards the tail end, the 25th and 26th, the swell turns to the SW with extremely long periods of 20–22 seconds, but the height is barely 1 ft to 2 ft. The combined energy climbs to 349 on the 26th, but with more messy wind, it won't add up to much.

There’s no standout day that screams "go." The closest to a pick might be the 16th for size or the 17th for that groundswell potential, but the wind messes both up. I’d keep the board in the car trunk and check back later.

Rusty.

Read more