Salmon Creek Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s chew the fat on Salmon Creek for the next couple of weeks.

To be straight with you, for a spot that usually pumps out waves, this is a rough stretch. There’s a heap of onshore wind and sloppy conditions to wade through, and the real moments of glory are few and far between. The water temp is about 15°C, which is dead normal for this time of year, nothing weird going on. The first real sniff of something decent isn’t until Sunday the 30th of August, and even that’s a bit touch and go.

The rest of August is basically a bust. Thursday the 27th is a mess with onshore wind and a blown-out 7ft swell in the afternoon that’s only 6 seconds – that’s pure wind slop. Friday and Saturday are more of the same; there’s plenty of energy in the water but the wind just trashes it.

Sunday the 30th of August morning is the first time the stars align a bit. The wind goes almost dead calm from the west at just 3 mph, which is offshore here. You’ve got a clean 4ft swell from the SW with a long 16-second period. That’s real groundswell. The energy is pumping at 1224. The rating is still low though, hinting at a tide issue or it being a bit fickle. But for the local who knows the sandbar, that early clean window is the best bet of the first week.

We then slide back into a funk with onshore breezes for the start of September. Monday the 31st and Tuesday the 1st are small, with 3ft to 3ft SW swells and a cross-onshore chop. Not worth ringing in sick for.

Looking deeper into the second week, Tuesday the 8th of September afternoon pops up. There’s a 4ft swell from the WNW with a short 8-second period, but the wind goes cross-offshore from the south at 6 mph. The report says the conditions are clean. That’s a rare clean wave. The energy is moderate (474), and while the period is short, a clean face might give you a few fun ones.

The ugly duckling is the end of the run. Friday the 11th of September afternoon looks big and nasty: 10ft from the NW, but with a terrible 8-second period and a fresh onshore wind. That’s a churning mess. That energy reading of 1551 is for experts only, or the kite surfers.

So, my one standout is Sunday the 30th of August morning. That light offshore wind on the 4ft, 16-second SW groundswell is where you want to be. The other chance is Tuesday the 8th of September afternoon for a cleaner, smaller session. It’s a tough forecast, but those are the windows.

Rusty.

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