Rainbow Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into it. We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but there’s some solid promise on the horizon for Rainbow Bay.

The next few days are pretty average. The first real chance for a wave is Sunday morning, July 26th, with a clean, 3ft SSE swell. The wind is light offshore, so the surface will be clean, but the wave energy is weak (225). It’s surfable, but nothing to get excited about, and it’s a sheltered point, so it’ll be small. This soft, weak pattern hangs around through Monday and Tuesday, with the swell dropping to 3ft on Tuesday morning under glassy conditions. The water temp is sitting at 69°, which is pretty much normal for this time of year.

Things get a bit spicy later in the week. Thursday afternoon, July 30th, the swell bumps up to 5ft, but it’s short period and onshore, so the quality is poor. Wait it out.

Now, here’s the stand-out. From Friday, July 31st, through Sunday, August 2nd, we get a proper run. The swell builds to a clean 6ft to 7ft from the SSE, with a period of 10 seconds. The wind is solid offshore from the S, 15-25 km/h, keeping the waves clean and lined up. The combined wave energy is strong, hitting 746 on Friday afternoon and 796 on Saturday. This is the best of the forecast. The south swell direction matches the optimum for this point, so expect some nice, peeling lines. The 7ft height is a bit much for beginners, but great for intermediate and above surfers.

After that solid window, the swell backs off into the first week of August. Monday the 3rd still has 5ft clean waves, but the wind goes cross-shore, making it a little grovelly. The sets get longer and cleaner again on Tuesday morning, August 4th, with a glassy 3ft ESE swell at 11 seconds, but the energy is moderate.

The second week is a mixed bag. There’s a gap in quality from the 5th through the 9th of August, with a lot of smaller, weaker, and onshore windswell. The ocean just looks messy. Then, on Monday, August 10th, a promising long-range pulse shows up. The morning has a clean 4ft ESE swell with a very long period of 12 seconds, and moderate offshore wind. The energy is strong (524). This is a promising sign, but it’s a week and a half out, so keep your fingers crossed. That long period will be best at the point, as it can be a bit hard to handle at a beach break.

So, the call is clear: don’t bother paddling out until Friday, July 31st. The weekend of the 1st and 2nd of August is your best bet for the best waves. Later in the second week, keep an eye on Monday, August 10th, for a potential return of quality.

Rusty.

Read more