Red Strand (Dirk Bay) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. I’ve run the numbers on your local patch, and it’s a quiet one for the foreseeable.

We’ve got a long stretch of pretty flat and messy conditions before anything worth writing home about shows up. Patience is the game.

Tuesday morning (August 25th) you’re looking at a knee-high 1ft SSW groundswell with a long, lazy 13-second period. The water’s sitting at 64°, which is a touch warmer than usual, but that’s about the only bright spot. The ENE breeze is a clean cross-off at 12 mph, but with combined energy a feeble (43), it’s just a wet-suit change for the die-hards.

All through the rest of August, it’s the same story: tiny 0.5ft to 3ft waves with short, weak periods, and persistent cross-shore winds chopping the surface. Thursday morning (August 27th) gives you a clean look with a light offshore 1ft groundswell (12-second period), but the swell is a whisper.

We finally get a little pulse of moderate energy on Friday morning, August 28th. A 3ft S swell with a quick 7-second period bumps the energy up to (168). The wind is light from the WNW, keeping it clean. It’s surfable but nothing special.

Then the weekend gets blown out. Saturday through Monday (August 29th-31st) is a write-off with strong WSW winds driving messy surf into the bay. The swell gets a push to 5ft, but it’s all lumpy cross-on junk. Honestly, with the wind and chop, a kite boarder would have a better time than a surfer.

The first real standout is on Tuesday, September 1st. A solid 6ft SSW swell rolls in with an 8-second period. The energy jumps to a strong (408). This is expert-only territory, but unfortunately the wind is a howling 25 mph from the SW, making it a messy, cross-onshore mess. It’s powerful, but ugly.

The week after that drops back into tiny, long-period spook swells that barely break 2ft. The best chance comes on Monday, September 7th. The morning has clean, offshore north wind at 18 mph pushing into a 3ft WSW swell. It’s weak (4-second period), but glassy. The real gem is the afternoon glass-off: a light offshore NNW breeze at just 3 mph, turning a clean 2ft SW swell into a perfect little solo session.

Then the big dog arrives on Wednesday, September 9th. A massive 8ft SSW groundswell with a 9-second period hits, with combined energy screaming at (1682). This is for very experienced surfers only, and a moderate cross-shore chop from the W will keep it raw and powerful.

So, your best bets: that glassy Monday September 7th afternoon session for clean little waves, or the monstrous 9th for those who want a real challenge. The rest is a waiting game.

Rusty.

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