Rhino Head Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s get into what’s cooking for Rhino Head.

The next couple of days are kicking off with a decent pulse of long-period SW groundswell. The ocean’s got some real grunt in it, with combined swell energy pushing over 1300. We’re looking at waves in the 5-6 ft range. The wind is a gentle cross-offshore breeze, so the lines should be clean. This is about as good as it gets for the beginner-friendly reef setup at Rhino Head, so Saturday the 22nd is your clear standout.

You’ll feel that the water temp is about average for this time of year.

Sunday the 23rd sees the swell ease slightly, but still 5-5 ft with that long 16-17 second period. The wind swings around nicely – a glassy morning on the 24th with a small 3 ft leftover swell. Those are your best windows for a fun, manageable wave.

The middle of the first week gets ugly. Strong, fresh winds from the SSW hit on Tuesday the 25th, making everything lumpy and cross. Combined energy drops, but conditions are blown out. Avoid that.

Wait for Wednesday the 26th. A window of light offshore NW wind shows up in the morning. The swell is a clean 4 ft from the SW, with 13-second period. It’s clean, it’s small, and it’s rideable. Not a huge standout, but a solid session if you’re keen.

Thursday afternoon the 27th throws in a bigger pulse: 7 ft with a very long 19-second period from the SW. Combined energy jumps to 2818. This is powerful, clean surf but the cross-off wind is moderate. For a break that’s sheltered and geared toward beginners, 7 ft+ starts to get punchy – more suited to experienced surfers, and the long period might make it race a bit at a reef. Still, the quality is there.

Friday the 28th is a write-off with the SSW winds returning and the swell messy at 6-7 ft.

Then, a real second-week standout. Skip the grumpy stuff at the end of August and look to Thursday the 3rd of September. The afternoon session looks prime: a clean, 5 ft SW swell with 14-second period and a light cross-off breeze from the NW. Combined swell energy is 1022 – moderate but well-formed. This is a long-range call, but the conditions line up for a clean, fun afternoon.

Friday the 4th of September also looks good, with glassy conditions in the afternoon on the same 5 ft SW swell. That’s a close second.

To be honest, you’ve got a few windows here. The best of the bunch are Saturday the 22nd for the biggest, cleanest swell, and Thursday the 3rd of September for that sneaky clean afternoon. There are gaps of blown-out days between them, but when it’s on at Rhino Head, it’s on.

Rusty.

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