Sandy Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it. This is Rusty, and I’m looking at the outlook for Sandy Beach. To be straight with you, the next 16 days are a tough stretch for this spot. There’s not a single session I’d recommend paddling out for.

Right now, the energy is just being wasted by strong cross-shore winds. Starting Tuesday afternoon, we’ve got a 6 ft east-northeast swell at a short period of 7 seconds, but the wind is a fresh cross-shore at 22 mph, so it’s lumpy and messy. The combined swell energy is 529 – that’s moderate energy, but with the wind state, it’s not surfable. The water temp is 81° and about average for this time of year.

Wednesday the 26th, the swell drops right down to 2 ft, but it’s a long-period 14–18 second swell from the south. Sounds nice in theory, but the wind is still fresh cross-shore at 22 mph from the NE or ENE, ruining any chance of clean waves. This pattern just locks in day after day. The combined energy jumps up to 634 and 857 mid-week, but again, that east-northeast cross-wind is relentless, and the wave comments are all "poor surf conditions."

Through the end of August and into the first week of September, we keep seeing that same story. Swell heights bounce between 3 ft and 8 ft, with periods mostly short (7–8 seconds) from the ENE. There’s a couple of pulses from the south, but the wind never turns offshore. By Thursday the 3rd of September, we’re looking at 8 ft from the ENE at 8 seconds with a strong breeze at 25 mph – that’s more of a mess than a wave. It’s too big for beginners, and the wind is too nasty for anyone to enjoy.

There is a tiny flicker of hope around the 5th of September. Saturday afternoon shows a 7 ft swell from the ENE, but the period jumps to 12 seconds, and the combined energy rockets to 1373 (strong energy). The wind is still a strong breeze though. By Sunday the 6th, we finally see that number hit 1433 with the same 12-second period, but the wind is a fresh cross-shore again, and the best we get is a “marginal” rating of 1 out of 10.

Even into the second week, it doesn’t get better. The 7th of September shows a long-period southerly pulse (3 ft at 18 seconds) but the wind is cross-onshore. The 8th and 9th have a consistent 6 ft ENE swell but again, cross-onshore and lumpy conditions.

Look, Sandy Beach is a fairly consistent spot, but with this relentless ENE cross-wind and no sign of an offshore breeze in the entire 16-day window, there is nothing that qualifies as a decent session. The setup might be more interesting for the kite crowd than for paddle surfing. Sometimes it just goes like this. Forecasts can change, but right now, I’d leave the board at home.

Rusty.

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