The Cove Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Well, folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – the outlook for The Cove over the next couple of weeks is, frankly, a tough one to write. We’re looking at a long, dry spell with very little to get excited about on the paddle front.

Right from the start, from Sunday afternoon the 26th of July, the swell is tiny at only 1.0 ft from the ENE with a short period of 8 seconds. The combined swell energy is weak at just (14), and with a risk of thunderstorms and a cross-onshore breeze, the surf is just about flat. Water temperature is sitting at 86°F with an anomaly of 1°F, so pretty average for this time of year, nothing unusual there.

We then roll through Monday the 27th and Tuesday the 28th, with the swell dropping even further to a measly 0.7 ft. The combined energy drops to single digits (6-8). While there are some glassy moments early Monday morning and clean conditions with cross-offshore winds, you’d be hard-pressed to catch a ripple. Wednesday the 29th brings offshore winds at 12 mph, which is a good sign for cleanliness, but with a 0.7 ft, 8-second ENE swell and combined energy of just (9), it’s still flat. The same story continues through Thursday the 30th and Friday the 31st – tiny 0.3 ft swells and combined energy barely making it into double digits.

The first week of August offers a slight bump, but it’s nothing to write home about. On Sunday the 2nd of August, the swell nudges up to 2 ft from the SE, with a short, crumbly 4-second period and combined energy reaching (26). Winds are cross-shore at 12 mph, so it’s messy. Then Monday the 3rd of August sees the biggest swell of the entire run at 3 ft from the SE, with a 5-second period and combined energy climbing to a moderate (56). But, the wind is cross-onshore at 6 mph, keeping it bumpy and poor. Honestly, with the size, chop, and short period, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The entire run from the 4th of August onwards sees the swell fading back to 3 ft and smaller, with combined energy dropping from the 40s to the teens. The wind stays cross-onshore or onshore, creating choppy conditions. The last few days, from the 8th to the 10th of August, offer a bit more period from the NE (9-10 seconds), which would normally be promising, but the swell height is only 1 ft and the wind is consistently cross-onshore, so it’s just clean, small, and weak.

There are no standouts here. The best of a bad bunch might be the morning of Wednesday the 29th of July with offshore wind, or the slightly bigger 3 ft on Monday the 3rd of August, but both are let down by tiny swell or poor wind. For a break that’s fairly exposed to the NNE optimum, we just don’t get the size or the right conditions lining up.

Rusty.

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