San Vicente Rivermouth Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. We’ve got a bit of a lean spell ahead for San Vicente Rivermouth, with only a couple of windows that might get the heart rate up if you’re keen.

The first week is pretty quiet. We start off Saturday the 22nd with a small 3ft NW swell, but the wind is blowing cross or cross-on at 9–16 mph, so it’s choppy and messy – a write-off. Sunday the 23rd morning brings a glimmer of hope: the wind goes glassy with a light ENE breeze, and there’s a tiny 3ft NE swell. It’s surfable but very ordinary. That glassy calm hangs around through Monday morning the 24th, but the swell drops to 2ft, so you’re really just bobbing around. From Monday afternoon all the way through to Wednesday the 26th, it’s flat or nearly flat – a proper gap of a few days with nothing to recommend.

Thursday the 27th sees a jump in swell to 5ft from the NW, with the combined energy hitting 408 (moderate). But there’s a risk of thunderstorms, and the wind is cross at 9 mph, so it’s not clean. Friday the 28th afternoon the swell builds to 8ft from the NW with a period of 11 seconds and combined energy shooting up to 1403 (strong). That’s a serious amount of water, but it’s also cross-on with 6 mph wind and the wave comment calls it marginal. That size is too big for beginners and really only for experienced surfers. It’s also a river mouth, so a long-period groundswell like this (11 secs is decent) can straighten out on a beach setup, but rivermouths often handle it better.

Now, the standout pops up on Thursday the 3rd of September. The morning session is the pick of the whole forecast. We’ve got a 6ft NW swell rolling in with a long period of 13 seconds, combined energy at 1136 (strong to very strong), and the wind is glassy – dead calm from the NW. The wave comment says “expect very good surf conditions.” That’s the one. The water temp is 73° with an anomaly of 3°, so a touch warmer than normal for late August. For a river mouth, that long period groundswell can line up nicely. The crowds are listed as “sometimes,” so you might have company but it won’t be a zoo. If you’re an intermediate or better, that Thursday morning is your best shot.

Friday the 4th of September holds a similar 7ft NW swell at 12 seconds, but the wind picks up cross at 6 mph in the morning and goes cross-on by the afternoon, so it’s less tidy. Saturday the 5th has 8ft NW swell but the wind cranks to 19 mph cross-shore, making it lumpy and ugly. After that, it fades into onshore mush early in the second week.

So overall, the first week is a write-off. There’s a moment of moderate swell on the 27th and 28th with iffy conditions, then genuine clean surf on Thursday the 3rd of September morning with glassy wind and a solid NW groundswell at 6ft. That’s the one to circle on your calendar.

Rusty.

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