Suicide Cliffs Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it.

Look, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it – we’ve got a rough run ahead for the next week and a half at Suicide Cliffs (reef). The forecast is lean for a while. There's nothing worth paddling out for right from the start on Sunday the 19th. We’re looking at a big gap of about seven days with no real surf to speak of. Conditions are poor, with cross-onshore winds and tiny, weak swell. The water’s sitting at 81°, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year – not a huge deal, but you’ll notice it.

The first faint glimmer comes on Sunday the 26th in the morning, but it’s still marginal, with a 3ft southeast swell and a very long period of 15 seconds coming in clean. That’s a groundswell, and it’s got moderate energy (279). The wind is light cross-offshore, so it’ll be clean. The afternoon is where things start to look better – the swell jumps to 5ft from the southeast with a 14-second period, and the energy climbs to a strong 827. With glassy to clean conditions, this is your first genuine look at the week. The direction is southeast, and the optimum for this break is southwest, so it’s not spot-on, but it’ll be rideable.

Now, the real standout – and I mean the one that gets my heart pumping – is Monday the 27th. Morning has a solid 10ft southeast swell with a 15-second period. That’s a very long-period groundswell. Combined energy is 4483, which is strong. The wind is cross-offshore and clean – that’s a big positive. The afternoon sees it bump to 12ft from the same direction. This is big surf, over 8ft, so this is expert territory only. The period is so long that at a beach break it might break a bit straight, but on a reef like this, it will hold up nicely. Crowds are likely here, so get in early.

Tuesday the 28th is a write-off for normal surfing. The swell is predicted to be too big for this break, with 25ft to 26ft southeast and south-southeast swells. That’s insane energy (48881). Even with clean wind, we’re talking about waves that are dangerous even for experts. The same goes for Wednesday the 29th, with a 20ft southwest swell and gale-force winds. That’s not surfable.

From Thursday the 30th onward, the swell drops back but the wind turns onshore or cross-shore and lumpy, making things messy. The rest of the window is poor. If you’re looking for a kite session, some of those big, clean, windy days might be your thing, but for a surfer, stick to Sunday the 26th afternoon through Monday the 27th. That Monday morning is your best shot – big, clean, and powerful.

Rusty.

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