The Breakwater-St Ives Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's talk about what's on the menu for the next couple of weeks.

We're looking at The Breakwater-St Ives, a point break that's fairly exposed to the swell but can be a bit inconsistent. The water temperature is sitting at 64°F, which is pretty much normal for this time of year – nothing to worry about on that front.

The first week is a bit of a write-off, to be honest. The surf is poor through to the end of August and into the start of September. We've got a few small swells, but they're all tangled up with strong winds – cross-off, cross-shore, you name it. The energy is weak to moderate at best, with values like 5 and 1852 on Saturday afternoon, but that 12 ft swell on the 29th of August is messy and cross-shore, so it's not worth paddling out for. The early part of the month is no better; we're looking at poor conditions with wind swell and lumpy cross-chop. It's a bit of a dead zone until the 5th of September.

Saturday morning, the 5th of September, is the first real glimmer of hope. We've got a clean 4 ft swell from the west with a 9-second period and light offshore winds. The energy is a modest 313, and the guidance says the optimum swell direction is from the NW, so this is a bit off, but it's our best bet for a clean session. It's still a marginal call, but it's the standout of the period.

After that, we're back into poor conditions for a few days until the 7th of September. Monday afternoon on the 7th looks interesting – a solid 12 ft swell from the southwest, but the wind is cross-shore and the energy is massive at 1489. The problem is the swell is too big for the break, so it's an expert-only session if you're game.

The 8th of September is a no-go. We're looking at 15 ft swells with fresh cross and cross-on winds – that's dangerous and messy, even for the pros. The energy is off the charts at 4640 and 4070, but it's just not surfable.

The 9th of September afternoon is another decent option. Clean 4 ft swell from the west with a 9-second period and light offshore winds from the SW. The energy is 439, and it's a good, clean session for the intermediate crew.

The 10th of September is a weird one. We've got strong offshore winds, but the swell is tiny – 2 ft and 0.7 ft – with very low energy. It's clean but hard to paddle into, and the 12-second period on the Thursday afternoon is a long-period groundswell that's just too small to do anything with.

The 11th of September has a bit more size – 6 ft from the west – but the winds are strong offshore, making it clean but tough to get into. The energy is moderate at 498, but it's still a marginal call.

The 12th of September is back to small, clean surf with strong winds, but the energy is low and the swell is small. It's not worth the effort.

Bottom line: The best windows are the 5th of September morning and the 9th of September afternoon. The 5th is the standout for a clean, manageable session, but don't expect epic waves. The rest of the forecast is a lot of waiting for the right moment.

Rusty.

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