Rainbow Rocks Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s break it down. The first surf worth paddling out for is on Sunday, July 19th, at Rainbow Rocks. We’ve got a solid 7 ft swell from the northwest, with a period of 8 seconds. The wind is a cross-off out of the north-northwest, keeping things clean. The water temperature is a chilly 51°F, which is a whopping 5°F colder than normal – that’s a serious bite. The combined swell energy is 1013 (moderate), and the quality is good for experienced surfers. This is your best bet for the opening days.

Monday the 20th eases off. The morning has a 5 ft northwest swell with a light cross-on breeze, but it’s a bit marginal. The afternoon turns glassy, with a 5 ft northwest swell and an 8-second period. The combined energy drops to 638 (moderate), but that glassy wind is a major plus – it’ll be smooth and clean.

Tuesday the 21st drops way down. The morning has a tiny 2 ft swell from the southwest, but with a 16-second period – that’s proper groundswell, though small. The wind is glassy again, so for a longboard, it’ll be a fun little session. The combined energy is 455 (moderate). After that, the surf goes quiet.

From Wednesday the 22nd through to Friday the 24th morning, the swell stays tiny, around 2 ft, with periods from 14 to 15 seconds. The winds are mostly light, but these are marginal days.

Then on Friday afternoon the 24th, things get interesting. The swell is 3 ft from the southwest, but the period shoots up to 24 seconds – very long. The combined energy is 1376 (strong), but with that long period and a cross-shore breeze, it’s going to be a tricky, racy wave at a beach and reef setup. It’s more for a bigger board or a stand-up paddle.

The weekend of the 25th and 26th holds similar conditions: 3 ft to 4 ft from the southwest with periods of 19 to 21 seconds. The wind is a moderate cross-shore, making for a bit of chop. The combined energy is strong (1037 to 1475), but the quality is marginal.

The real standout, though, is Wednesday, July 29th afternoon. The swell jumps to 10 ft from the northwest, with a short period of 7 seconds. That’s a big, powerful batch of windswell. The wind is a cross-off from the north-northwest, and the combined energy is a massive 1531 (very strong). This is only for experts – 10 ft of steep, short-period swell is serious. The conditions are clean, but you need to know what you’re doing. This is the best pure wave window across the entire 16-day forecast.

A couple of other dates show 10 ft on the 30th afternoon and 31st afternoon, but the winds are more cross or cross-off, and the quality is poor. After that, the first few days of August show clean, cross-off winds, but the swell is small and the forecast is poor – not worth the drive.

So, circle Wednesday, July 29th afternoon at Rainbow Rocks. That 10 ft northwest swell with clean wind is the one to chase. The rest is mostly small, long-period groundswell or marginal conditions. Keep an eye on the forecasts, but the 29th is the one.

Rusty.

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