Sakawa River Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what the Sakawa River has in store for us over the next couple of weeks.

First up, the water temp is sitting at 80°, which is basically bang on average for this time of year – nothing to write home about, but comfortable.

Honestly, we’ve got a rough start. From Thursday the 20th right through until Sunday the 23rd, it’s pretty much a write-off. Tiny, weak swell, a lot of cross-onshore wind, and the odd thunderstorm. The combined energy is barely a whisper, with readings like 57 and 74 – that’s barely a ripple. You’re not missing anything.

The first real glimmer of hope comes on Monday the 24th. The morning session is a standout. We’ve got a 7 ft SSE groundswell rolling in with a very long 16-second period, and it’s dead glassy. The combined energy jumps to 2042 – that’s proper moderate wave energy. The comment says it’s excellent for experienced surfers, and I’d agree. This is a big, powerful river mouth wave, so it’ll be handling that energy well. For a late August morning, this is the pick of the whole forecast. The afternoon gets a bit choppy with a 9 mph southerly, so hit it early.

The swell keeps building into Tuesday the 25th with 8 ft to 10 ft from the south, but the wind is a cross-onshore mess. Energy is huge (up to 4135), but the quality is marginal. At 8 ft plus, this is expert-only territory anyway, and the chop makes it a battle. The Wednesday morning session on the 26th is a real hidden gem: 8 ft south swell, a light cross-offshore breeze from the WSW, and clean conditions. That’s another standout for the more experienced crew. The energy is still strong at 1915.

Things get messy again from the 27th with strong onshore winds and rain, and the swell stays big. It’s not surfable in a good way. By Friday the 28th, we get a bit of a reprieve with a clean morning and a glassy afternoon, but the swell has dropped to 8 ft to 8 ft and the period has shortened to 10 seconds. Still fun for the right person, but not the same as the Monday peak.

The second week fades out. From Saturday the 29th through to the end of the forecast, we’re looking at a mix of smaller 3 ft to 5 ft swell, mostly cross-shore or onshore winds, and dropping energy. There’s a clean morning on the 1st of September with a 4 ft ESE groundswell and a 13-second period, but it’s nothing special. And on the 3rd of September, a clean morning with 3 ft ESE swell – a little something for the longboard, but don’t get your hopes up.

To sum it up: the best surf on offer is Monday morning the 24th of August. Get there at dawn for clean, glassy, 7 ft SSE groundswell with plenty of energy. The Wednesday morning the 26th is a close second. Everything else is either too small, too windy, or just plain ordinary. The Sakawa River (Japan) is a river mouth, so that long-period groundswell on the 24th will be breaking nicely there.

Stay safe.

Rusty

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