Shooting Gallery Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, listen up. This is Rusty, and I’m looking at the surf outlook for the region. The big story here is that it’s a long, frustrating, and mostly blown-out run at Shooting Gallery. We’re looking at a serious stretch of poor conditions that goes from now all the way through the forecast period, with the only real glimmer of hope being a short window. It’s going to be a long wait for any quality.

Let’s get into it. The first few days, Wednesday through to the following Saturday, are just ugly. The wind is onshore or cross-onshore from the north or northeast, blowing at 9 to 19 mph, and the swell is a messy, short-period 3 ft to 5 ft from the north. The wave energy is moderate, but the conditions are choppy and lumpy. It’s just not worth paddling out. This stretch is a full write-off, and the swell isn’t breaking well or cleanly.

Then we get to Sunday, the 13th. Sunday morning is still cross-onshore with 5 ft of north swell, but Sunday afternoon finally shows some promise. The wind swings to a light 3 mph cross-offshore from the west-northwest, and the wave state cleans up. The swell drops slightly to 4 ft, still from the north. The forecast says "expect good surf conditions" here. This is the standout period for the whole 16 days. On Monday the 14th, the real magic happens. The morning is glassy with a long-period groundswell from the north-northwest—2 ft at 13 seconds. That period, over 15 seconds, is very long, meaning it will be lined up and powerful, but the size is small. The water is 74°, which is normal for this time of year. For a reef break like Shooting Gallery, that long period groundswell is a dream. It’s the only window where the wind is perfectly calm, and the conditions will be peaky and clean.

After that, it all goes downhill again. From Monday afternoon onward, the wind turns back onshore and ramps up, the swell gets short and weak, and it remains a trough of poor surf conditions through the second week. There’s really nothing else to recommend. The crowds at Shooting Gallery are sometimes an issue, and you can expect a few locals to be out for that Sunday afternoon and Monday morning glass-off.

So if you’re a surfer, your whole plan for the next two weeks revolves around Sunday afternoon the 13th, and especially the glassy Monday morning of the 14th. That’s the only real chance for quality. After that, the 16-day window looks mostly empty.

Rusty.

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