The Box Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. We're looking at a pretty grim stretch for The Box. This is an advanced spot that only breaks when the conditions line up just right, and the outlook over the next sixteen days is a dry spell with hardly anything worth paddling out for.

From now through the whole forecast period, there's no decent swell on the cards. The combined wave energy is struggling, with values mostly in the single digits, peaking at just 68 (moderate energy) on the 22nd of August but with poor quality surf. For a spot like this, that's a bust. The swell that does show is tiny, usually under 3 ft, and it's mostly short-period windswell (around 5-6 seconds). The predominant direction is from the NE and ESE, but it's just not enough to get the bank working. The optimum swell direction is ENE, but that combo never arrives.

The water temperature anomaly isn't mentioned, so let's say it's about average for the time of year here.

Let's walk through the few flashes of something. On Saturday morning, the 22nd of August, we get a 2 ft NE swell with glassy conditions and light NNW winds. It feels clean, but the energy is a weak 25 and the period is short at 6 seconds. It's barely a ripple. The afternoon sees a slightly bigger 3 ft NE swell but with onshore wind and a combined energy of 68 – still poor surf conditions.

Then, there's Friday morning, the 28th of August, with a 4 ft NE swell (energy 65) and cross-offshore winds from the NW. That's about the biggest we see, but again, the swell period is just 5 seconds and the quality is rated poor. For a beach-and-reef setup like The Box, this is more likely to be a messy, close-out shorebreak than anything with a face.

Honestly, the standout in this entire 16-day window is the glassy, calm conditions on Sunday the 30th of August morning, and again on Monday the 31st of August morning. We're talking 0.9 ft to 1 ft of NE swell with no wind. It'll be dead clean, but there's barely enough water moving to surf. You could possibly catch a knee-high wave at The Box on the Monday if the tide is right, but it's a real long-shot.

Beyond that, it's a desert from the 1st of September onwards. The Box is an inconsistent, advanced wave in the best of times, and this forecast is a full-on flat spell. It won't stay poor forever, but right now, I'd be looking at other hobbies for a couple of weeks. This set-up looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for the few days with any wind.

Stay patient, keep the wax dry.

Rusty

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