The Patch Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s on the cards for The Patch over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, we’ve got a bit of a slow start. The early part of the forecast is pretty grim, with small, messy waves and cross-onshore winds making for a frustrating paddle-out. You’ll want to sit tight for the first few days, because the real action doesn’t kick off until Sunday, August 9th.

That Sunday morning is the standout for the first week. We’ve got a clean 5 ft swell rolling in from the WNW with a period of 10 seconds, and the wind is a light cross-offshore from the WNW. That’s going to set up some proper, well-shaped lines at The Patch. The combined energy sits at 640 (moderate wave energy), so there’s some decent grunt behind it. This is a fairly consistent break, so expect a few waves to yourself, but it can get crowded here sometimes. The water temp is about average for this time of year, so no need to dig out the thickest wetsuit just yet.

After that, things get messy again. From Monday the 10th through to Saturday the 15th, the wind swings onshore or cross-onshore, and the swell drops off. There’s some energy in the water (around 400 to 470 combined energy), but the wind and chop will ruin it. Honestly, it’s not worth paddling out unless you’re desperate for a float.

Then we get a second, smaller window of hope. The morning of Monday, August 17th looks clean, but the swell is only 2 ft – a long-period groundswell from the SW at 15 seconds. That’s a very long period, so it’ll be a bit fat and straight at a beach break like The Patch, but it’ll be clean as a whistle with cross-offshore winds. For the real standout in the second week, aim for Tuesday, August 18th. The morning session has a clean 2 ft SW swell (16 seconds), with light cross-offshore winds, and the combined energy jumps to 627 (moderate wave energy). That’s a sneaky good day for a log or a mid-length. The Wednesday the 19th afternoon has a 7 ft, short-period (6 seconds) WNW windswell that’s clean, but that’s a steep, choppy close-out that’s really only for the experts or maybe the kite crew.

The long and short of it: Sunday, August 9th morning is your best bet of the whole forecast – clean, solid, and consistent. Tuesday, August 18th morning is the long-range gem, but it’s small, so keep your expectations in check. The rest is mostly a waiting game.

Rusty.

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