Salamumu Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I gotta be straight with you—this 16-day stretch for Salamumu is a tough one to call. There’s not a single session that jumps out as a proper standout, and the outlook is pretty grim for most of it. The overall pattern is dominated by persistent cross to cross-onshore winds and lumpy, messy conditions. The water temp is sitting right on 81°, which is just about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

We start on Thursday the 13th of August with a bit of swell—4ft from the SSE, period 13 seconds, but it’s blown out by a 16 mph ESE cross wind, making for a moderate cross-shore chop. Combined swell energy is moderate at 641. It’s barely surfable, and the call is “marginal” at best from the Thursday afternoon. Then we hit a real dry spell: from Friday the 14th all the way through to Monday the 17th of August, it’s just poor conditions day after day—small surf, cross-onshore winds, and lumpy cross-chop. Nothing worth paddling out for.

We get a little flicker of hope on Tuesday the 18th of August. The morning sees 4ft out of the SW with a period of 16 seconds, and by the afternoon it’s up to 5ft from the same direction, period still 16 seconds. The wind drops to a gentle breeze of 9 mph, still cross but lighter. Combined swell energy jumps to strong at 1160 in the afternoon. It’s still labelled “marginal”, but this is the best we’ll see—maybe a few cleanish walls for a dedicated crew if the tide lines up. Still, the cross-chop is there, so don’t expect perfection. This one gets a quiet nod as the highlight.

From Wednesday the 19th of August, it’s back downhill. Stronger winds kick in—fresh to strong breezes from the SE and ESE, cross-onshore, and the swell gets bigger but messier. By Thursday the 20th of August afternoon, we’ve got 8ft from the S at 14 seconds, but with 22 mph cross-onshore winds and a combined swell energy of 2758 (very strong energy). That’s not a surfer’s wave—that’s a washing machine. For a spot like Salamumu, a reef break that’s consistent and exposed, that setup looks far more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. The size and wind combo are just nasty.

The rest of the second week—from the 21st of August right through to the 28th of August—is a write-off. Consistent swell but always with strong onshore or cross-onshore winds, lumpy conditions, and poor surf quality. Swell heights range from 2ft to 7ft, but without clean winds, it’s all chop and mess. The last few days, the period drops down around 11 to 12 seconds, so it’s shorter period windswell, adding to the slop. There’s no second wind here.

In short: Tuesday the 18th of August afternoon is the only window worth looking at, and even then it’s only for the keen and the patient. The rest of the 16 days? Leave the board at home or bring the kite gear.

Rusty.

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