Rockaway Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, taking a look at the Rockaway forecast for the next couple of weeks. Let’s be straight with each other: it’s a tough stretch.

Right off the bat, we’ve got a long, frustrating gap with no real surf to get excited about. From Tuesday, July 21st, right through to Friday, July 24th, it’s all poor surf conditions. The swell is tiny, mostly under 3 feet, and the wind is mostly cross-off or onshore, but the real killer is the energy levels are just pathetic. The combined energy is as low as 21 (Wednesday afternoon), which is basically zero push. You’d be bobbing around more than riding.

The first real chance of anything rideable shows up on Saturday morning, July 26th, but it’s a real mixed bag. The swell is coming from the SW at 3 feet with a period of 19 seconds – that’s a long-period groundswell. The combined energy (860) is moderate, suggesting there’s some power in the water. But the wind is cross-onshore from the WNW, and the forecast calls it “marginal” at best. For a beach-and-reef setup like Rockaway, that long period (19 seconds) might make it break a little too straight, but it could offer some better-shaped waves if you get the right bank. The water is a balmy 60°F, which is a solid 4°F above normal, so it’s feeling much warmer than usual for this time of year.

Sunday, July 27th, is more of the same: SW swell around 3 feet, long period (18 seconds), and moderate energy (1081). The wind is still a gentle cross-onshore, so it’ll be a bit lumpy, but there’s enough juice for a few scores if you’re patient. The crowds are listed as “sometimes” at Rockaway, so you might not have to fight for every wave, especially on a mid-summer morning.

The standout on the horizon, if you’re an expert, is Tuesday, July 29th. The swell jumps to 8 feet from the NW, but with a short period of just 8 seconds. That’s a lot of water moving fast, and combined with a moderate wind energy (1394), it’s going to be a beast. The wind is onshore and cross-onshore, so it’s going to be a messy, washing-machine kind of day. This is strictly for expert surfers only. The conditions are rated as “poor,” which is a shame, because there’s plenty of power. For a spot like this, with that much swell and onshore wind, it might actually be more of a day for the kite surfers to have a go.

After that, the swell drops back down, but the pattern stays the same: cross-onshore winds and poor conditions. The energy levels stay moderate, peaking around 883 on August 5th with a 7-foot NW swell, but the wind is still crummy. Honestly, this whole outlook is a bit of a grind. There’s no standout session that I’d get out of bed for. The best bet is to keep an eye on those Saturday and Sunday mornings (July 26th and 27th) and just hope the wind lays down a bit. The forecast is pretty reliable for the next few days, so what you see is what you get. The long-range stuff for the first week of August is promising for size, but the wind is a big question mark.

Rusty, signing off.

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