The Heads Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty. Let's have a look at what's on the table for The Heads over the next couple of weeks.

The Heads (sandbar)

Alright, we've got a solid run of swell coming through, but it's a mixed bag of conditions. The real winner is going to be Friday morning, July 17th. We’re looking at a clean 8ft SW groundswell rolling in with a 12-second period, and the wind is glassy out of the WSW at just 3 mph. The water is sitting at 64°, which is bang on average for this time of year. The combined energy is pumping hard at 1,503 – that's proper wave energy. This is prime for experienced surfers; the sandbar should be handling that swell direction well. That Friday afternoon is also looking good, dropping to a 7ft SW swell with the same glassy conditions, but the morning is the standout.

Saturday the 18th is a write-off. The wind goes cross-shore and the swell drops to 4ft with a choppy vibe. Sunday and Monday are a bit of a slog with cross-shore winds and middling quality, though Monday morning on the 20th has a 6ft SW swell and glassy conditions, it’s a smaller window of clean surf.

Now, hold on to your board. Wednesday morning, July 23rd, is another absolute belter. We’ve got a 10ft SW groundswell with an 11-second period, and it’s glassy again with an ENE breeze at 3 mph. The combined energy is a massive 2,526. That’s big, powerful, and clean. This is for experienced surfers only – it’s going to be a heavy day out there. The afternoon follows with a 8ft SW swell and glassy conditions, also excellent.

Thursday the 24th is where it gets crazy. The swell jumps to 12ft on Friday morning with a 16-second period – that’s a very long period groundswell. The combined energy is a staggering 6,875. It’s clean with glassy conditions, but the file says it’s predicted to be too big for this break. This is big-wave territory only; if you’re not an expert, stay on the beach. It stays massive through the weekend, with Saturday the 25th seeing 10ft SSW swell but with onshore wind and rain, so it’s messy.

We’ve got a gap of a few days of marginal conditions or waves that are just too big. Then, things clean up nicely again. Tuesday morning, July 28th, is a beauty. A 8ft SE swell with a 12-second period, glassy NW wind at 3 mph, and combined energy of 2,293. The swell direction is to the SE, which matches the break’s optimum, so that sandbar should be firing. The afternoon is also glassy with a 8ft ESE swell. Wednesday the 29th is also clean with a 7ft ESE swell and offshore winds.

The last week of the month and into August settles down. Thursday the 30th has a 5ft ESE swell with clean conditions, and Friday the 31st is a great little pulse with a 8ft SSW swell and glassy winds. Saturday, August 1st, is a smaller 4ft SE swell, clean and glassy, but the period is short at 8 seconds, so it’ll be a bit weaker.

Overall, the standout sessions are Friday morning, July 17th, and Wednesday, July 23rd. The first one is a clean, powerful groundswell with perfect wind. The second is a bigger, heavier swell that’s also glassy. For the rest, it’s a mix of big, messy days and some clean, smaller windows. If you’re an experienced surfer, you’ve got two golden days to aim for.

Rusty.

Read more