Port St Johns Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, this is Rusty. We've got a proper South African river-mouth setup to look at here at Port St Johns. The water's sitting at a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, about 72°, so a degree and a half above average—nice and pleasant for a paddle.

The first real standout is Saturday morning, August 1st. It's glassy early, with a light 3 mph easterly breeze, and we've got a solid 6 ft ESE swell running at 9 seconds. The wave energy is moderate at 628, and conditions are looking clean and very good. This is a decent option for a beginner, given the river-mouth setup and the manageable size. The swell direction is bang on the optimum SE, so the break should be working well. Crowds are sometimes a thing here, but with the morning glass, it's worth the early start.

Sunday morning, August 2nd is a ripper for the experienced crew. The swell jumps to 8 ft from the ESE, period bumps up to 12 seconds, and the energy is strong at 1995. Glassy conditions again with a light WSW breeze. This is proper groundswell energy, and the size means it's for intermediate to advanced surfers only—too big for beginners. The 12-second period will give some nice, well-shaped waves, but keep in mind the longer gaps between sets.

Monday morning, August 3rd is another cracker, with a 7 ft ESE swell, 11-second period, and 1055 energy. Glassy conditions again with a light NNE breeze. Excellent surf for experienced surfers, and the offshore wind direction is ideal.

After that, things drop off a bit. Tuesday the 4th and Wednesday the 5th have smaller, more marginal surf, with the wind turning cross-shore or cross-on. The swell drops below 5 ft, and the energy weakens.

Then we hit a bit of a rough patch. From Thursday the 6th through to Monday the 10th, the wind gets up, and the swell gets messy. The standout to note is Sunday, August 9th, when a 13 ft SSW swell shows up, but it's accompanied by a 22 mph cross-shore wind, making it a choppy mess. That afternoon, the swell is 10 ft but the wind is still strong. Then Monday, August 10th sees a massive 18 ft SE swell with 7906 energy—that's strong energy, but the wind is howling at 22-25 mph. Both days the swell is just too big for this break, and the wind is all over the place. This is more suited to kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Tuesday morning, August 11th still has a big 13 ft ESE swell with 6753 energy, but the wind is lighter at 6 mph from the SW. The size is still too big for most, but it's cleaner than the previous days. After that, the swell starts to drop back down.

Wednesday morning, August 12th looks promising again. The swell is 6 ft from the E, 9-second period, 975 energy, and glassy conditions with a 3 mph NE breeze. Expect very good surf conditions. Sunday morning, August 16th also has a clean, clean look to it—3 ft S swell, 12-second period, 550 energy, and a light cross-offshore NNW breeze. It's small, but clean and rideable.

So, to sum it up: the best of the best is Sunday morning, August 2nd for the experienced surfers—big, clean, and powerful. For the beginners, Saturday morning, August 1st is the pick. There's a lot of wind and swell chaos in the middle of the period, but the first few days and the tail end of the forecast offer some solid windows.

Rusty.

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