Shida Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what Shida’s got cooking for us.

The next week and a half is a bit of a slow burner, but the second half of the outlook really fires up. We’ve got a solid run of small, clean waves kicking off mid-week, but the real standout is a proper pulse of solid groundswell that moves in right at the end of July and into the start of August. There’s a couple of days of messy cross-onshore wind in there around the 22nd and 23rd, so that’ll be a bit of a write-off.

Alright, let’s get into it. Wednesday the 15th kicks things off with small 2 ft waves from the east, period around 8-9 seconds. The water’s sitting at 76° which is about average for this time of year. The wind is offshore, keeping things clean, but the energy is weak (94). It’s surfable, but it’s pretty ordinary. That pattern holds through Thursday the 16th, with the swell bumping up just a touch to 3 ft, still from the east-southeast. The energy is moderate now (131-159), and the offshore wind stays on it, so it’s clean but still small. By Friday the 17th, the wind shifts cross-offshore, and the conditions are a bit messy—poor surf, so I’d give it a miss.

Saturday the 18th is where it starts to get a bit more interesting. The swell pushes 3 ft to 4 ft, east-southeast, and the energy jumps to moderate-high (273) by the afternoon. The wind is cross-off, but it’s clean. Then Sunday the 19th is the pick of the first week. Glassy conditions in the morning with a light SSE breeze, 4 ft swell from the east-southeast, period 9 seconds, and the energy is really starting to build (265-331). This is the first session that feels genuinely good. Monday the 20th and Tuesday the 21st keep the quality high with offshore winds and the swell holding steady at 4 ft to 4 ft, period stretching out to 10-11 seconds. The energy is strong (329-431). That 11-second period is a nice groundswell pulse, and it’s going to line up nicely at Shida.

Then we hit a bit of a lull. Wednesday the 22nd and Thursday the 23rd are a write-off. The wind swings cross-onshore from the north-east, the swell is a bit choppy, and the conditions are poor. Just forget those days.

Friday the 24th brings a bit of a recovery. The swell is 4 ft to 4 ft from the east-northeast, but the period on the afternoon drops to a short 5 seconds, which is a bit gutless. Still, the wind is clean, so it’s surfable. Saturday the 25th is small again, 2 ft to 3 ft, offshore winds, but it’s just a bit weak.

Now, here’s the big one. Sunday the 26th of July is where the real excitement starts. The swell jumps to 8 ft in the morning, and 8 ft in the afternoon from the east-northeast. The period is 8-10 seconds, and the energy is massive (887-1278). That’s a proper, powerful swell. The wind is offshore, so it’s going to be clean and punchy. This is expert territory—over 8 ft is only for the experienced crew. Monday the 27th continues with 8 ft in the morning (energy over 2000) and 6 ft in the afternoon, still with offshore winds. This is the best run of the whole outlook. The swell direction is east-northeast, which is a good match for the spot’s optimum south-east, but the size and power overrides that.

Tuesday the 28th is still good, 4 ft to 4 ft, but it’s easing off. Then Wednesday the 29th and Thursday the 30th bring a completely different swell. A long-period groundswell from the south rolls in, period 13-16 seconds, size 5 ft to 6 ft. The energy is very strong (1191-2339). That 15-16 second period is very long, and it’s coming from the south, which is a solid direction for Shida. The wind is light and offshore or cross-offshore, so it’s clean. This is a beautiful, mellow, long-period groundswell that’s going to offer some lovely, lined-up waves. It’s a quieter, more refined alternative to the bigger, punchier east swell earlier in the week.

So, to wrap it up, the standout is Sunday the 26th through Monday the 27th of July for the big, powerful, offshore east-northeast swell. That’s the one for the experienced crew. The second standout, for a completely different vibe, is Wednesday the 29th and Thursday the 30th of July for the long-period south groundswell with clean conditions. That’s a session for the connoisseur.

This is Rusty, signing off.

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