Roads End Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – the next 16 days are a real mixed bag, and honestly, there’s not a whole lot to get excited about for a proper paddle session. The first real surf recommendation we get kicks off on Thursday, July 23rd, but it’s a tough one. The water is absolutely frigid at 51°F, which is a whopping 8°F colder than normal for this time of year – that’s seriously unusual, so you’ll want a thick suit and booties. We’ve got a small, weak swell from the NW at 4ft, with a period of 9 seconds and moderate combined energy (395). The wind is a light offshore from the WNW, which is a positive, but the whole thing is tagged as marginal. It’s a bit of a tease.

We then roll into a string of poor to marginal days. Friday the 24th and Saturday the 25th are nothing to write home about. Saturday sees a dramatic drop in swell size down to 2ft, but a jump in period to 22 seconds – that’s some very long-period groundswell from the SW, which can be weird at a beach break like Roads End, often breaking too straight. The wind is a cross-onshore breeze at 12 mph, chopping it up. The combined energy spikes to 837 on the Saturday afternoon, which is moderate, but the quality is poor. By Sunday the 26th, we’re back to marginal conditions with a light breeze and a 3ft to 3ft SW swell.

The whole of the next week, from July 27th through to August 1st, is a slog. The wind is mostly cross or cross-on, with speeds picking up to 16 mph at times. The swell stays small, mostly under 3ft, and the combined energy drops from moderate (636) down to weak (219) by the end of the week. It’s a lot of chop and not much push. The best you can say is that the mornings often have a light breeze, offering a slightly cleaner window, but the waves are just too small and weak to really get into.

There’s a noticeable gap in any decent surf from the start of August onwards. From the 2nd up to the 5th, it’s all poor conditions with weak swell energy (as low as 69) and persistent cross-shore winds. The swell tries to pick up a bit on Thursday, August 6th, with a 5ft W swell and a short period of 9 seconds, giving us moderate combined energy (513). But the wind is a cross-shore breeze at 9 mph in the morning, which would be workable, but it’s only still tagged as marginal. The afternoon sees that wind pick up to 16 mph, turning it into a mess. It’s a long way out, so it’s a bit of a hopeful look, but nothing to bank on.

If you’re desperate for a paddle in the second week, the morning of Thursday, August 6th, at Roads End is your best bet, but it’s a long shot. The setup is a beach and reef, so that longer-period groundswell might find a bit of a line on the reef, but with the wind not being clean offshore, it’s a gamble. The week after that looks like it’s going to fizzle out again.

Honestly, with the persistent cross-shore winds and weak to moderate, short-period swell, this stretch looks more interesting for the kite crowd than for us paddle surfers. The wind is consistent and the water is flat enough. It’s a tough run, but that’s the way it goes sometimes. Forecasts can change, so keep an eye on it, but for now, I’d be finding something else to do.

Rusty.

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