Tarpits Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s have a look at what’s on offer here at Tarpits. Honestly, the next week or so is pretty bleak. We’re staring down a long stretch of small, weak swell and tricky winds, so don’t get your hopes up too early. There is a bit of light at the end of the tunnel, but you’ll need some patience.

Starting now, through the middle of July, the surf is tiny – mostly 1 foot to 2 feet – and the period is all over the place. The combined wave energy is low, sitting in the double digits or just tipping into three digits (113 to 145). That’s barely enough to push a log around. Winds are mostly onshore or cross-on, so it’s choppy and messy. Nothing really rideable with any quality. This stretch runs from Sunday the 12th right through to Wednesday the 15th – just a flat, frustrating run.

Thursday the 16th morning sees a little bump, with swell height up to 3 feet from the W, period dropping to 9 seconds. Combined energy hits 187 – still weak. Winds are light and onshore, so it’s not clean. Still not worth paddling out for.

Friday the 17th is more of the same, with the energy falling again.

Then we get to Saturday the 18th. Things start to shift. The swell pushes up to 3 feet from the S, period stretching out to 16 seconds, and combined energy jumps to 639 – that’s moderate wave energy now. Winds are light and cross-on, so it’s a bit ruffled. The conditions are marginal at best; the score is low, but at least there’s some push. This is the first day that might get you interested, but keep it in perspective.

The real standout, and I mean the only true standout in this whole 16-day window, lands on Sunday the 26th of July. Sunday morning, Tarpits sees a 2-foot SSW swell with a very long period of 20 seconds – that’s proper groundswell. Combined energy is 380, so moderate energy, but it’s that period that’ll give you some nice shape. The wind goes glassy – dead calm – and the forecast says “glassy” conditions. That’s the kind of morning you wait for. The swell direction (SSW) matches up nicely with the optimum direction of SW for this break, so it’ll wrap in clean. Keep in mind, with such a long period, it might be a bit straight at a beach break, but Tarpits is a beach and reef setup, so the reef could help sort it out. Crowds are possible here, so get in early.

Before that, the rest of the week is mostly poor or marginal. Wednesday the 22nd and Thursday the 23rd have onshore flow and tiny swell. Friday the 24th has a 1-foot swell but with a 24-second period – long-period energy but barely any height, so it’s more of a tease.

So, to sum it up: you’ve got a long dry spell until the 18th of July, then a marginal window, and then the real gem is the morning of Sunday the 26th of July. That’s the one to mark on the calendar. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual there.

Stay patient, keep an eye on that Sunday morning, and maybe bring a longboard for the rest.

Rusty.

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