Pic Kipu Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s cut to the chase – the next couple weeks are going to be a grind. There’s surf, sure, but it’s mostly small and sloppy, and you’ll be scratching for anything decent. The one big, juicy swell is a long way off, and even that comes with problems. So, let’s walk through it.

First up, the water at Pic Kipu (Big Island) is running at 69°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year. Nothing wild, but you can ditch the thick rubber.

Your only real window for a surf this week is Friday morning, August 21st. It’s not gonna light the world on fire, but it’s the cleanest we’ve seen. There’s a small 4ft west swell with a 10-second period. The wind is dead calm – glassy. The energy is weak, with a combined value of 221, so it’s all about finesse, not power. It’s surfable, but just barely. Don’t get your hopes up.

After that, it’s a total drought. From Saturday the 22nd through the end of the month, it’s a desert. We’re talking waves from 0.6ft to 3ft, mostly junky with onshore wind and a bumpy surface. There’s a brief blip on Thursday the 27th with moderate energy (100), but the swell’s just too weak to matter. The entire first week of this forecast is a dead loss.

Now, the elephant in the room: the end of the run. Around the 1st and 2nd of September, the ocean wakes up with a vengeance. The swell jumps to 8ft, with the combined energy readings going through the roof – 1375 and 1560. That’s some serious, heavy water. The swell is from the W, but the wind is trash – onshore and choppy. At that size, over 8ft, it’s strictly for the experts, and with the wind howling, this setup looks way more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. The last afternoon on the 2nd shows a 6ft W swell with a cross-off wind, which is a bit more manageable, but you’re still dealing with a mess.

So here’s the bottom line: there are no true standouts in this window. The only day that’s even close to worth your time is Friday morning, the 21st, and that’s just because it’s clean and glassy, even if the waves are tiny. As for that big swell at the start of September – it’s promising, but it’s a week and a half out, so don’t book your flights yet. Keep your expectations low and your board ready. This is one of those stretches where the ocean just isn’t cooperating.

Rusty.

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