Redwood Creek Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's take a look at what we've got coming up for Redwood Creek.

Right off the bat, this is a tough one. Redwood Creek is a river break that rarely breaks, and it's an advanced wave when it does. Over the next 16 days, the outlook is pretty grim for a proper surf. There's a long gap from now until Friday morning, July 4th, where the conditions are just too poor to recommend, with weak, short-period swell and onshore wind.

From Saturday the 5th of July morning, we start to see some knee to waist-high swell building, around 5ft to 6ft from the northwest, but the wind is a cross-onshore, leaving it bumpy. The surf stays marginal through to the end of the first week, with northwest swell between 4ft and 6ft, but the wind is never cleanly offshore. The combined energy is moderate, ranging from around 430 to 875, which confirms it's not powerless, but the constant on or cross-onshore breeze keeps things messy. The period is short, around 7 to 8 seconds, so it's just wind swell and not much push.

Things get interesting around the second weekend, but it's a long way off. The middle of the second week, Thursday July 16th, and Friday July 17th, sees a shift. The swell drops in height to about 3ft, but the period jumps to 16-18 seconds. That's a proper groundswell, arriving from the WNW. The wind is forecast to be light and onshore, which is a positive. The combined energy reading is strong, up to 993. This looks like the best window on offer, with clean, lined-up waves if the wind holds. But it's a river break, and a long-period swell can be tricky here, possibly breaking a bit too straight. It's a promising but less certain call for that far out.

Then, right at the very end of the forecast, into Saturday July 18th, we get a spike in size. The swell jumps to 8ft in the morning and 10ft in the afternoon from the NW. The period is still a moderate 9 seconds, and the wind is offshore. The combined energy is huge, over 1862, which means there's a ton of power. However, at 8ft this is getting too big for beginners, and at 10ft it's only for experts. The wind looks clean, but the short period will make it lumpy and difficult.

Truthfully, nothing here is a standout. The whole period is a bit of a miss. If you're desperate, the best bet, and I mean the *only* bet, is the window on the 16th and 17th of July. That clean, long-period groundswell could offer a few lines at a very quiet break. But being a rarely breaking spot, it’s a gamble. The rest of the time, the setup with consistent onshore wind and short-period swell looks more interesting for a kite surfer than a paddle surfer.

Keep your expectations low.

Rusty.

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