Saltwater Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab your board. This is Saltwater, and it's a bit of a slow burn, but there's a proper pulse hiding in the second week.

Right off the bat, the surf this Sunday morning (16 August) is small, around 2ft from the SSE. It’s got a long 17-second period, so there's some push behind it, and the light S cross-off wind will keep it clean. It’s not setting the world on fire, but it’s a start. The afternoon jumps up to 5ft, but the period drops out to a weak 7 seconds, so it’ll be a bit lumpy and less organized, even if it's still clean. The energy is moderate (449).

We roll into Monday (17 August) with about 5ft from the ESE, and a light SSE cross-off breeze in the morning keeps things clean. The afternoon turns a bit cross-shore with a slight chop, making it less appealing. Tuesday (18 August) is similar in size, but the cross-shore wind and small ripples make it pretty average. Through the start of the week, the combined energy is moderate, ranging from 238 to 397.

Now, Wednesday (19 August) is where things start to get interesting. The morning is 4ft from the SE, but it’s the afternoon that’s the standout: a glassy 4ft with a 10-second period from the SE (332). That’s your cleanest, most fun wave of this first stretch. A light NE wind, zero texture on the water. Get in the water then.

Thursday and Friday (20-21 August) are a write-off. The wind goes onshore and the surf gets poor and messy. It’s a couple of days to do something else. The energy drops right off, getting down to weak levels (111-225).

The weekend (22-23 August) brings a slow rebuild. Saturday (22 August) is small and ordinary, clean but unremarkable. But hold on to your hat for Sunday morning (23 August). The swell kicks in proper and the energy readings go through the roof. We’re looking at a solid 10ft from the S with a 10-second period, and the combined energy is a massive 1654. The wind is glassy, dead calm. This is the real deal. That size is well over the 8ft mark, so it is for experts only. It’s a big, powerful day at Saltwater, with the S swell wrapping in nicely.

The early part of the next week (24-25 August) is a letdown after that peak, but the energy is still moderate. Monday morning (24 August) is onshore and poor, but the afternoon flips to glassy with 4ft from the S (290). It’s worth a paddle. Tuesday (25 August) has a clean 4ft morning, but the afternoon wind howls to 19 mph, even if it’s cross-off. It’s going to be howling.

Then we get another notable pulse. Wednesday morning (26 August) is a different beast. We’ve got 5ft from the SSE but with a very long 16-second period (1195). This kind of groundswell is prone to breaking a bit straight at a beach break, but at a point like Saltwater, it should line up nicely and offer some proper walls. It’s going to be a standout, but the moderate cross-off wind will keep it a bit lumpy. Still, that’s a lot of energy in the water.

The rest of that week (27-28 August) settles back down to clean but modest 3-4ft waves from the S/SSE, with light cross-off winds. It's clean, fun, and not too crowded by the looks of things. The energy is moderate, dipping to 198 on Friday morning.

The final weekend (29-30 August) and the start of the next week (31 August) sees a smaller, windswell-infused pattern, with waves from the NE and ENE. It's clean and cross-off, but the period is short and the energy is weak to moderate (120-231). It’s the sort of small, fun, uncrowded surf that keeps you honest.

For my money, the standout is that Sunday morning, 23 August. It’s a proper event, a big clean pulse from the south. The second spot would be the Wednesday morning, 26 August, with that long-period groundswell. That’s the one that’ll have the point working top to bottom.

One last thing – water temps are about average for this time of year, so you won’t need a hood, but it’s not bathwater either.

Keep it salty.

Rusty.

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