The Cutting Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Righto folks, it's Rusty here. We're looking at The Cutting for the next 16 days, and it's a proper tale of two forecasts. Get ready for some absolute monsters, but you'll need to pick your moments.

The first batch of surf arrives on Sunday, July 5th, but it’s not for the faint-hearted. The swell is a massive 16ft from the SSW with a very long 17-second period, pumping out a massive combined swell energy of 13,664. That's a big, powerful ocean. The wind is a cross-onshore, so it'll be a bit messy and honestly, it's just too big for this break. It's an expert-only zone if you’re even thinking about it.

Monday, July 6th is where the real window opens. The swell drops to a still-chunky 8ft from the SSW, but the difference is the wind. We’ve got a clean offshore breeze from the NNE at 9 mph. The wave energy is still solid (2,943), but those offshore winds will groom it into perfect, clean lines. This is excellent surf for experienced surfers, and it’s the standout of the entire forecast. The water temp is sitting at about 59°, which is normal for this time of year.

This quality holds through Tuesday, July 7th with a clean 7ft SW swell in the morning, and then Wednesday, July 8th throws up another huge pulse – 10ft from the SW with a very long 18-second period and energy of 6,013. The wind goes glassy in the afternoon too. But again, that 10ft mark is getting into the “too big” zone for The Cutting, so only the top crew will be getting amongst it.

Things settle down into a really nice rhythm from Thursday, July 9th through Saturday, July 11th. We’re looking at consistent 7–8ft SSW and SW swells with clean offshore winds. These are perfect, clean conditions for experienced surfers, and with the crowds at The Cutting only "sometimes" an issue, you could have it pretty good to yourself. Thursday afternoon is particularly sweet with glassy conditions.

There’s a bit of a lull from Sunday, July 12th. The swell drops right down to 3ft and winds pick up strong. The quality drops off, and really, there’s not much to recommend for a few days.

Then Monday, July 13th brings another big spike – an 12ft WSW swell with a 17-second period and energy of 6,595. The wind is cross-offshore and clean, but that size is back into expert territory. It’s followed by a couple of scrappy days with onshore winds.

The end of the run, around July 18th and 19th, gets chaotic. We’re seeing massive swells again – 15ft to 16ft – with very high energy readings (13,750 and 20,551). While some windows are glassy, it's consistently too big for this spot. The Cutting is exposed and this much power will just close it out.

The Verdict: Your best windows are Monday, July 6th through Saturday, July 11th. That stretch of clean, offshore winds on a solid 7–8ft SW swell is the absolute highlight. After that, it’s a mix of massive, junked-out swell or small, windy leftovers. Stay sharp.

Rusty.

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