Sandsend Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here again. Let’s talk about this Sandsend Bay forecast, but this time in feet and miles per hour, the way some of you old salts like it.

This is a bleak picture, I won't lie. We’re looking at a real drought of surf over the next couple of weeks. It’s a long, quiet stretch for the coast, with hardly a single session worth screaming about.

Starting off, we’ve got a total flat spell. From Sunday the 12th right through to Saturday the 18th of July, the waves are tiny and weak. Swell heights barely reach 4 feet, with a short, mushy period of 6 seconds – that’s just wind chop with no guts. The wind is a constant headache, blowing from the NE and ENE, keeping a cross-onshore bump on everything. It’s hopeless.

The 19th and 20th of July show a spike in energy. On Monday the 20th, the swell jumps to 6 feet in the morning and 7 feet in the afternoon, coming from the NNE with a period stretching to 8 and 9 seconds. The combined energy pumps up to 373 and 563 – that’s proper power. But here’s the rub: the wind stays cross or cross-onshore. The morning of the 20th has a "gentle cross-shore with slight cross-chop", and the afternoon slides into a "gentle cross-onshore and fairly choppy" mess. It’s enough swell for an intermediate, but at 7 feet it’s getting too big for beginners, and the wind just ruins the surface.

That’s really the only window with any size. After the 20th, it fades fast. The 21st drops to 5 feet, and then it’s back to tiny, weak leftovers. By the 24th and 25th of July it’s practically flat – barely 1 foot with energy scores of 7 and lower. We get a couple of glassy mornings on the 23rd and 24th – the water goes like glass – but with only 2 feet of swell, there’s nothing to push you along.

The very end of the run, around the 27th of July, shows a little flicker: a clean, cross-offshore wind with a tiny 0.7-foot swell from the N, but with a 9-second period attached to an energy reading of 11. That’s a long-period signal, but there’s no size to go with it. It might be clean, but it’s a tease.

The only time I’d even think about paddling out is the morning of Monday the 20th of July. The swell is there at 6 feet from the NNE with moderate energy (373), and it’s big enough for an intermediate. But with the cross-shore wind chopping it up, and this being a fairly exposed beach break, the quality is going to be marginal. It’s the best of a bad lot, but it’s no standout. Crowds are "often" around here, so expect company.

Water temp? No anomaly given, so it’s about average for July – nothing wild to report.

Bottom line: a full week of nothing, one day (20th July) with size but messy conditions, then flat again. For the kite surfers, those bigger, choppier days might look more interesting than a paddle session.

Keep your hopes up, but don’t hold your breath.

Rusty.

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