Tankers Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s on the table for the 16-day window. Straight up, I gotta level with you – this is a tough one. The swell is there, but the wind is a constant battle. For the most part, we're looking at a lot of cross-off or cross-shore breeze, which is gonna mess with the surface. The real standout? Honestly, it's slim pickings, but we'll find a session or two.

First up, Tankers (reef). The first surfable wave we see isn't until Friday the 31st of July, and even then, it's a tough call. We've got a 2ft swell from the SW with a very long 16-second period, but it's getting hammered by a 25 mph E wind. That's a cross-off, so the wave face might be clean, but the combined energy is a middling 824. It's poor surf conditions. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing weird going on there.

We then hit a run of bigger, but messier, swell. Saturday the 1st of August brings a 10ft E swell, but it's short period at 8 seconds and that same strong cross-off wind. The energy is 1297, but this is a reef break, and 10ft with a strong wind is a wild, dangerous beast. Only for the top-tier experts. The next few days follow a similar pattern – moderate to fresh cross-off winds, and swell that's either too big and junky, or too small. There's a lot of marginal conditions.

The best chance we get for a proper session is Sunday the 9th of August. The morning shows a 2ft swell from the S with a very long 19-second period. The wind is a gentle 9 mph from the ENE, cross-off. The combined energy is 525, which is moderate. The score is better than anything else in the window. That long period groundswell will wrap into the reef nicely, and with light cross-off wind, it should be clean. This is the one to circle. The afternoon is a bit chunkier with a 3ft swell and stronger wind, but the morning is the go.

The rest of the second week is a bit of a washout. There's a lot of small swell, poor surf conditions, and persistent cross-shore winds. We get a flicker of hope on Friday the 14th of August morning with a light onshore breeze (SSE 6 mph) and a 2ft S swell with a 14-second period, but it's still a marginal call. The Saturday the 15th of August morning has a similar look, but again, the wind is onshore.

So, in summary: don't expect much. The whole 16-day window is a struggle against the wind. The only real highlight is the morning of Sunday the 9th of August. That's your best bet for a clean, long-period wave at Tankers. Everything else is either too blown out, too small, or too messy. It's one of those spells where you have to be patient and pick your moment.

Rusty.

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