The Reef (Culebra) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Gotta be straight with you – it’s a tough stretch ahead for our area. The next 16 days are looking pretty bleak for anything worth paddling out for.

Honestly, there’s only one spot that even gets a nod, and that’s The Reef (Culebra). It’s a very consistent little reef break, exposed to the north, which is its optimum direction. The water temp is sitting at 85°F, which is about average for this time of year.

But the real story is the swell. All the way through the 16-day window, we’re looking at tiny, weak waves. The combined energy never gets out of the double digits for most of the run, only bumping up to a weak 96 on the 13th of September. The swell height barely coughs up 2ft on the 5th and 6th of September, coming from the east and northeast. The period is mostly short, around 7 to 8 seconds, so it’s just weak, windswell junk. The wind is a constant problem too – most days it’s a moderate cross-shore or cross-off breeze from the east or southeast, which makes for a messy, choppy surface.

There is a tiny glimmer on the morning of the 6th of September, when the wind actually goes offshore from the SSE. The waves are a pathetic 2ft, but the report says "surfable waves but very ordinary conditions." That’s as good as it gets. For a spot that’s normally very consistent, this is a real dry spell.

The long and short of it is: the new moon and the following weeks look like a total write-off. The swell is too small, the wind is never glassy, and the energy is just not there. It’s a blank run, which is a bit unusual for The Reef, but sometimes the ocean just doesn't play ball. Keep an eye on the forecasts, but for now, I’d leave the boards in the car.

Rusty.

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