Sakawa River Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here, and I’ve got the lowdown on what’s shaking out for the Sakawa River area over the next couple of weeks.

First off, the water temp is sitting at 80°, which is about average for this time of year, so nothing freaky – just your usual warm bath.

We’re looking at a rough start. Thursday the 20th through to Sunday the 23rd is pretty much a write-off. Tiny little waves, mostly under 2ft, with a mix of onshore winds and a lot of “poor surf conditions” in the forecast. You’ll be staring at flat, bumpy water. The combined swell energy is weak all through this period, bottoming out around 42 and not breaking 100 until Sunday afternoon. Honestly, it’s a good time to wax your board or go for a paddle.

Now, there’s a gap of very ordinary conditions until we get to Sunday afternoon, the 23rd. That’s when we finally see a pulse. The swell ticks up to 2ft from the SSE, with a period of 14 seconds, and the energy jumps to 226. It’s glassy, so the surface will be clean. But it’s only just “surfable,” nothing to write home about.

But hold onto your wetsuits, because the real standout is Monday morning, the 24th of August. That’s your best bet. Sakawa River is a river break, and it’s fairly exposed to swell, with the optimum direction being SE. We’ve got a solid 7ft swell from the SSE, with a very long period of 16 seconds. That’s proper groundswell energy – the combined energy is a hefty 2459. The wind is glassy, dead calm. This is excellent surf for experienced surfers. The water will be clean, the lines will be long and powerful. Just a heads up, though: with that long period, it can make river mouths and beach breaks a bit shifty, but for a river mouth, it should set up nicely. Crowds are “sometimes” an issue here, so you might have some company, but it’s worth it.

After that, things get a bit wild. Monday afternoon and Tuesday the 25th still have size – 8ft to 12ft – but the winds swing onshore and the comments say the swell is actually getting too big for this break. The energy is massive, hitting 5181 and 6128, but it’s a mess. Wednesday the 26th is even bigger, with a 13ft swell and a combined energy of 10317, but the wind is cross or cross-onshore, and again, it’s just too much for the Sakawa River. This is strictly for the brave and the very experienced, if at all. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing at that size.

We get a bit of a lull around Friday the 28th and Saturday the 29th, with smaller, cleaner surf in the 4ft to 6ft range. The winds are cross-offshore, so it’ll be clean, but the energy drops to 300-450 range. It’s okay, but nothing special.

The final little window to keep an eye on is Sunday the 30th of August, and again Monday the 31st of August. The morning sessions look best. On Sunday, we’ve got 6ft from the SSE at 11 seconds, glassy, with good energy (781). On Monday, a similar story: 4ft from the S at 13 seconds, glassy, with energy at 984. Both are clean and promising for a fun session, but the size is down from that Monday 24th peak.

After that, from the 1st of September onwards, the swell drops away and the wind picks up, so the window closes out.

So, bottom line: if you’re an experienced surfer, Monday morning the 24th of August is your winner. Don’t sleep on that. For the rest of us, keep an eye on Sunday the 30th and Monday the 31st for some clean, smaller waves.

Rusty.

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