Royal Palms State Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s talk about Royal Palms State Beach. It’s a sheltered reef and point, and right now, it’s looking like a tough stretch. The water’s sitting at 71°F, which is about 6°F warmer than usual for this time of year. That’s a very unusual warm spell.

The pattern starts flat and messy. From Saturday the 18th through the week, we’ve got a persistent cross-onshore wind from the south and west, making everything choppy. The swell is tiny, around 2ft, with a long period of 15 to 18 seconds. That’s a groundswell, but it’s just not enough size to break properly with the wind on it. The combined wave energy is moderate, ranging from 221 to 385, but it’s all poor surf. A score of 0 or 1 out of 10 tells you everything. There’s no point paddling out.

The first real glimmer shows up on Tuesday the 21st morning. The swell picks up to 3ft from the SSW, with a 16-second period. The wind is a light cross-onshore from the south at 6 mph, so it’s not clean, but it’s the best we’ve seen. The energy is strong at 436. But it’s only a marginal call, and by afternoon the west wind picks up to 12 mph and ruins it.

Through the middle of the week, it’s the same story: small waves, onshore winds, and poor conditions. The swell direction stays SSW, but the period drops to 14 seconds on Wednesday, and the energy backs off. Thursday the 23rd afternoon sees a weird spike in period to 26 seconds, but the swell height is only 1ft, so it’s just a long-period groundswell that won’t break with any punch.

Then we get to Friday the 24th morning. The swell is 2ft from the SSW, with a 24-second period. The wind is light from the south at 6 mph, so it’s cross-onshore, but the energy jumps to 555 – moderate to strong. It’s still a poor surf call though.

The standout in this whole outlook is Saturday the 25th morning. The swell is 2ft from the SW, with a very long period of 21 seconds. The wind is light from the SSE at 6 mph, cross-onshore, but it’s light enough that the surface might have a chance. The energy is 721, which is strong. This is a reef and point, so that long-period groundswell should wrap in nicely. But it’s only a marginal forecast.

After that, Sunday the 26th through to the end of the month is more of the same: 2ft to 3ft swell, light cross-onshore winds, and moderate to strong energy. There’s a morning on Tuesday the 28th and Wednesday the 29th morning that have marginal calls, but the wind on Wednesday morning is a fresh cross-shore from the SE at 18 mph, which will make it lumpy and messy.

The final week of July into August the 1st and 2nd sees the swell trying to build. Thursday the 31st morning has 4ft from the S at 15 seconds, with a slight offshore wind from the WSW at 3 mph. That’s the cleanest wind we’ve seen. The energy is 567. But it’s again only a marginal forecast. By August the 2nd, the period drops to 9 seconds, and the energy is weak at 177.

Look, the only day that might be worth a look is Saturday the 25th morning, with that strong 721 energy and 21-second groundswell. The best call is Tuesday the 28th morning, with a 3ft SSW swell, a 17-second period, and a slight offshore wind from the SW at 3 mph. That’s about as clean as it gets in this forecast. The energy is 646, strong. If you’ve got a longboard, that might be your best bet.

For the rest, it’s a waiting game. The break is inconsistent, so a run of poor surf like this isn’t totally abnormal. But the forecasts can change, so keep an eye on the wind.

Rusty.

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