South Padre Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here with a look at what’s on offer for South Padre Island. I gotta be straight with you—this stretch ain’t looking great. We’ve got a solid 16-day run ahead of us, but honestly, if you’re hoping for a proper surf session, you’re gonna be let down. The whole outlook is a dry spell.

Right off the bat, looking at South Padre Island (beach/jetty), it’s a beginner-friendly spot that’s exposed to the swell, but it’s inconsistent. Over the next week and a half, we are stuck with tiny, weak energy. The combined swell energy is minimal, barely breaking double digits for most of the period, with the highest we see being around 338 on the afternoon of July 13th and 214 on the morning of July 15th (still moderate energy), but don’t get excited.

The water temperature right now at the start of the period is 83°, which is basically bang on average for this time of year.

From July 4th right through to July 19th, the story is the same: poor surf. We’re talking tiny amounts of swell, mostly 0.7ft to 5ft, with a very short period that rarely breaks 8 seconds. The wind is relentless, coming from the SE and SSE almost the entire time, howling at 12 to 25 mph. It’s cross-on or cross-shore, which is trashing any chance of a clean wave face. It’s choppy, lumpy, and messy out there.

Honestly, for the first week, you’re better off leaving the board at home. There is no standout session. The wind is just too strong and in the wrong direction for this exposed beach/jetty setup. With that much wind and such poor quality surf, this setup looks far more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

From July 13th onward, we see a slight bump in energy, but the wind problems remain. The morning of July 15th has a 5ft swell with a period of 7 seconds and a gentle cross-onshore breeze, which is the best of a bad bunch. The afternoon of July 13th also has a 5ft swell, but it’s still cross-onshore and moderate wind. But calling any of these a “standout” would be a stretch. The conditions are still poor.

So, what’s the call? There are no good surf options in this 16-day window. With the spot being inconsistent anyway, a blank run like this is more normal for the area. It tends not to stay this way forever, but you’d need a serious change in the wind forecast to make anything of this tiny, weak swell.

Rusty.

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