Pelican Watch Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let's break down what's on offer for the Pelican Watch area over the next sixteen days.

Honestly, mate, it's looking like a tough stretch for paddle surfing. We've got a long dry spell here. The first real chance of anything surfable doesn't show up until Thursday the 13th of August, and even then, we're talking about tiny, weak conditions. Before that, it’s pretty much a write-off. We're looking at a solid week to ten days with basically no recommendations.

Let's talk about Pelican Watch itself. This is a beginner-friendly, exposed spot that's fairly consistent. It likes a swell from the SE. The water temp is a warm 83°, which is bang on average for this time of year.

The main issue is the swell energy. For the first week, it’s weak as dishwater. Most days the combined energy is barely cracking 100, often sitting down around 35 to 80 (that's weak). The swell heights are mostly under 3 ft, with a super short period of 4 to 7 seconds – that’s just wind slop, not real groundswell. On top of that, we've got a persistent cross-onshore wind, which is chopping it all up.

There is a slight pulse around the 2nd and 3rd of August where the swell bumps up to 5 ft to 6 ft, and the energy climbs into the mid-to-high 100s and even 355. That sounds promising, but the wind is a cross-offshore, which can be tricky for a beginner spot and the period is still short, so the waves will be crumbly and not well-shaped. The guidance marks all this as poor surf.

The only faint glimmer of light is on the morning of Thursday the 13th of August. We get a glassy morning with the wind going dead calm – "glass" is what we want to hear. The swell is only 2 ft from the SSW with a short 5-second period, and the energy is just 50, so it's not going to be epic, but it might be surfable and very clean for a beginner. It's rated as "surfable but very ordinary".

Then on Sunday the 16th of August, we get another glassy morning, 2 ft from the E with 5-second period and 45 energy. Again, tiny and clean, but not much push.

Given the long stretch of weak, choppy, wind-affected swells and the fact that the best we can hope for are a couple of tiny glassy mornings, the setup here is honestly looking more interesting for a kite surfer than someone on a paddle board. There's just not enough energy or quality in the water for a proper surf.

This is a pretty normal pattern for the area when it goes quiet. It tends not to stay this poor for too long, so keep an eye on the charts.

Stay patient.
Rusty.

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