Suicide Cliffs Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here again. Let’s break it down in feet and miles.

The start of this run is a beast. The real highlight is Saturday afternoon, August 8th, at Suicide Cliffs.

Saturday, August 8th – That afternoon is the one. You’re looking at a 28 ft swell from the SW with a 12-second period. That’s a ton of water moving. The wind is howling onshore at 47 mph, but the forecast says the wind and tide are favorable for the break. The combined energy is massive – 19358. This is for experts only; anything over 8 ft is getting serious, and this is way beyond. The water is sitting at 86°F, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year.

The Saturday morning is a write-off. The same strong SW swell is there at 23 ft, but with 50 mph SSW winds, it’s just a mess.

Sunday, August 9th – The swell drops to 13 ft on Sunday morning, but the wind is still strong and onshore from the S at 31 mph. Poor conditions. The afternoon is similar with 15 ft swell and 28 mph winds.

Monday, August 10th – The swell is still hefty at 12 ft in the morning, but the wind is a bit lighter from the SSE at 22 mph. Still, the surf quality is poor. The afternoon sees 8 ft with the same wind.

Tuesday, August 11th – Things start to settle. Morning swell is 7 ft from the SW with a period of 11 seconds, and wind is 16 mph from the SSE. Still not great, but the energy is dropping (1826). The afternoon goes to 6 ft with a 10-second period.

Wednesday, August 12th – A bit of a shift. The morning has 5 ft swell from the SW, but the wind is cross-shore from the W at 16 mph, creating a bit of chop. The afternoon is cleaner – 5 ft from the WSW, with a 9-second period and a light cross-offshore wind from the WNW at 12 mph. The energy is down to 649. It’s marginal, but the cleanest we’ve seen in a while.

Thursday, August 13th – Now we’re talking. The morning has 3 ft of swell from the S, with a period of 9 seconds. The wind is light offshore from the NNW at 9 mph. That’s gentle, clean, and glassy. The energy is only 361, but for a little wave, that’s solid. The afternoon is similar, with a light cross-offshore breeze.

Friday, August 14th – The morning is a bit cross-shore, but the afternoon cleans up again. 4 ft from the SW with a 8-second period, and a light cross-offshore wind from the WNW at 6 mph. Clean conditions.

Saturday, August 15th – Back to poor conditions. Swell is small, wind is light, but it’s onshore or cross-onshore. Not worth it.

Sunday, August 16th – The morning looks promising again. 4 ft from the SW with a 8-second period, and a light cross-offshore wind from the ENE at 6 mph. Clean. The afternoon gets a bit messy with a cross-shore wind.

Monday, August 17th through to the end of the forecast (August 23rd) – The swell stays small, mostly under 3 ft, with periods between 8 and 13 seconds. The winds are mostly cross-offshore or cross-shore, keeping things clean or slightly choppy. The energy is low, often under 200. There are no real standouts here. It’s small, weak, and the quality is poor. The 23rd Sunday afternoon sees a bit of a pulse with a 13-second period and energy of 410, but it’s still only 3 ft and the report says poor surf conditions.

So, the only true standout is the Saturday afternoon, August 8th, at Suicide Cliffs. That’s a big, powerful, expert-only wave. After that, the 13th and 16th mornings offer the cleanest small waves, but nothing to get too excited about.

Rusty.

Read more