The Pass Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, ol’ Rusty here. Let’s get into it. We’ve got a 16-day window looking at The Pass, and it’s a tale of two halves. The first bit is a quiet start, then we get a nice little pulse of energy, followed by a long stagnant spell, so you gotta pick your moments.

The forecast kicks off with nothing worth paddling out for on Thursday the 30th and Friday the 31st of July. The swell is tiny – we’re talking 1ft to 2ft out of the NE and ENE, period only 7 seconds, combined energy levels are weak (33 to 36). Winds are cross-off, so it’s clean, but there’s just no power. A complete waste of a wax job.

Things finally start to look up on Saturday the 1st of August. It gets a bit rugged in the morning with a small 1ft cross-shore swell (13 energy), but hold on till the afternoon. That’s when the whole picture changes. Wind swings offshore from the SE at 15 mph, and a solid 6ft SSE swell rolls in with a 10-second period. The combined energy jumps way up to 646, which is proper moderate. That’s the real start of the action.

Sunday the 2nd keeps the goodness going. Morning sets are 5ft from the SSE, period 9 seconds, with a light cross-off breeze (729 energy). The afternoon cleans right up with a light offshore from the SE at 6 mph, offering 5ft waves and a beefy 956 energy reading. This is where The Pass starts to show its class. It’s a consistent point break, so expect a few more heads in the water – crowds are listed as “often,” so you won’t be alone.

Monday the 3rd of August is the standout, no question. Early morning glassy-off conditions with a slight air from the SSW, 6ft SSE swell at an 11-second period. That’s proper groundswell, full of energy, and the combined energy hits 726. For a point break like The Pass, that longer period (over 11 seconds) is perfect – it means the waves will shape up nicely with good lines and energy. The water temp is 69°, exactly normal for this time of year. If you only have one window, Monday morning is the one to chase.

After that, the wave quality drops off fast. Monday afternoon gets cross and smaller at 5ft, and from Tuesday the 4th onward, we’re staring at a long stretch of mostly poor conditions. Tuesday morning has tiny 3ft surf, but with glassy wind, it’s at least surfable (144 energy). Wednesday through the middle of the second week is all sub-3ft junk with weak energy (mostly under 100). Winds are mostly cross or onshore, making a choppy mess. Thursday the 14th of August is particularly flat, with only 1ft of weak E swell (23-39 energy) and poor conditions. The only decent-looking moment in that dry spell is Friday the 9th of August morning, with a glassy 3ft SSE swell (183 energy), but it’s still a very ordinary size. The rest of the second week is mostly a ghost town for surf.

So, to sum it up: the best bet is the run from Saturday afternoon the 1st through Monday morning the 3rd of August, with Monday morning being the clear winner – clean, solid 6ft groundswell at The Pass. After that, it’s a long wait of very small, mostly messy waves until the 16-day window closes.

Rusty.

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