Point Arena Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about Point Arena.

We’ve got a bit of a rough stretch ahead. The surf is going to be a tough nut to crack for most of this 16-day window. The energy is there at times, but it’s almost always paired with tough winds and messy conditions. The water temp is sitting right around 57°F, which is pretty much what you’d expect for this time of year, no surprises there.

The first real chance to even think about paddling out comes late on Tuesday, 18 August. The morning shows a 6 ft swell from the NW with a period of 7 seconds, and the wind is cross-offshore, cleaning it up. The combined energy is moderate, sitting at 343, but it’s a short-period swell, so it’s going to be a bit lumpy and weak. Still, it’s the first window that isn’t a total write-off. By the afternoon, the wind jumps to 19 mph, and while the swell bumps to 6 ft, that wind makes it a real chore.

Wednesday, 19 August, might be the best of a bad lot for the first week. The morning swell hits 7 ft from the NW with an 8-second period, and the cross-shore wind is manageable. The energy is moderate (708). It’s a bit on the bigger side, so it’s not for beginners, but for an intermediate, it’s the most interesting wave of the week. The afternoon is a write-off with 22 mph winds.

Then we hit a real dry spell. From Thursday, 20 August, all the way through the end of the month, the forecast is a broken record of poor surf conditions. The wind is almost always cross or cross-off but too strong, or the swell is just too small. The energy is there, with values like 520 and 482, but it’s all tied to short-period, wind-affected slop. There’s a brief flicker on Sunday, 23 August, with a 6 ft, 9-second NW swell and a lighter 6 mph wind, but it’s still cross-shore and the surf is just marginal. It’s frustrating.

The best call of the entire outlook is a long-range one, and it’s a bit of a gamble. Check out the morning of Thursday, 27 August. The swell is a solid 8 ft from the NW, period 8 seconds, and the energy is strong at 793. The wind is still cross-shore, but the wave size and power should be there. By the afternoon, the swell hits 8 ft (energy 1068), and the wind goes cross-off, making it clean. That is proper, big-wave territory. Only for experts, and it’s a week and a half away, so don’t book the trip yet, but that is the one standout in the whole 16-day window. The rest is just waiting for a better forecast.

Rusty out.

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