Royal Palms State Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

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

Honestly, it’s a pretty quiet stretch ahead. There’s no real swell of any size, and the conditions are mostly a bit messy. We’ve got a few mornings that will be worth a paddle, but don’t expect anything firing. The best of it will be early, when the wind drops right out.

The main spot to keep an eye on is Royal Palms State Beach. It’s a sheltered little reef and point setup, which is just as well because the swell is tiny. It’s got a bit of a south-west exposure, and the swell direction is mostly coming from the south-west, so that lines up okay. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing wild.

The first real window of opportunity is Wednesday morning, 19th August. The wind is glassy out of the south at just 3 mph, and we’ve got a 2 ft south-south-west swell with a 15-second period. That’s a long period groundswell, which will wrap around the point nicely. The combined energy is 258 (moderate), so there’s a bit of push in the water. It’s only small, but it’ll be clean. This is the standout session for the whole outlook. The wave comment says “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions,” but with glass and that long period, I reckon it’ll be a pleasant little session for a beginner. It’s inconsistent here, so don’t expect a wave every minute, but the few that come through will be tidy.

After that, it’s a long, quiet grind. The Thursday morning, 20th August, has a cross-on breeze and the swell drops to 2 ft, so it’s a write-off. Friday, Saturday, Sunday – all the same story: small, choppy, and nothing to get excited about.

Saturday morning, 22nd August, sees another glassy window with 1.0 ft of 18-second period swell. The combined energy is only 103 (weak), but it’ll be utterly clean. Still, for a surfer, that’s barely a ripple. Good for a longboard or a learn-to-surf session, but not much else.

We then go through a long stretch of “poor surf conditions” right through to the end of August and into early September. There’s a brief moment on Tuesday morning, 25th August, with glassy wind and 2 ft of 16-second swell (energy 269, moderate), but again, it’s small and inconsistent. Then on Friday morning, 28th August, we get a 2 ft, 19-second period swell (energy 281), but it’s cross-on and light wind ripples, so it’s not clean.

The only other thing worth noting is Monday morning, 31st August, where we get a 4 ft west swell, but the period is only 7 seconds – that’s short-period wind chop, not a proper groundswell. It’s onshore wind, and the combined energy is 268 (moderate), but with that short period, it’ll be a bumpy, sloppy mess. Not worth it.

After that, it’s back to tiny, weak swells with cross-on breezes through to the end of the forecast on 3rd September.

So, the bottom line: Wednesday morning, 19th August, is the best of a very quiet bunch. Glassy, long-period groundswell, small but clean. If you’re a beginner or just want to get wet in clean water, that’s your window. Everything else is a bit of a struggle.

Rusty.

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