The Wall Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get straight into it. I’ve been staring at the charts for The Wall and, honestly, it’s a pretty bleak picture for the next 16 days. We’re looking at a long stretch of poor surf conditions with no real standout sessions, so let’s be real about what’s on offer.

The overall pattern is a continuous run of weak, short-period wind swell and messy winds. The first real chance for a wave is on Tuesday afternoon, July 28th, but it’s a tough one. The swell is a weak 4ft from the SE, with a short period of just 7 seconds, and the combined energy is only 157 (moderate but weak). The wind is a cross-on from the SSE at 12 mph, making it choppy. The water temp is a bitterly cold 62°F, which is 5°F colder than normal for this time of year – that’s a serious shock to the system. Honestly, it’s poor surf, not worth paddling out for.

We roll into Wednesday, July 29th, and it’s more of the same. The morning drops to a tiny 4ft from the SE with a period of 5 seconds and energy of just 54 (weak). The wind is still cross-on from the ESE. The afternoon sees a bump to 5ft from the ESE, but the period is still a short 6 seconds and the energy jumps to 129 (moderate). The wind is directly onshore from the ENE at 16 mph, which will just flatten everything out. Still poor.

Thursday, July 30th, is the biggest swell of the whole period, but it’s a total write-off. We’ve got 6ft in the morning and 7ft in the afternoon from the ENE, with a period of only 6-7 seconds and energy readings of 415 (moderate). The wind is a fresh cross-on from the NE and NNE at 19 mph, creating a lumpy, messy mess. Even though there’s some size, over 5ft is too much for beginners, and with that onshore wind, it’s just a washing machine. This setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

From Friday, July 31st, onwards, we hit a slump. The morning has a 4ft swell from the ENE with a 6-second period, but it’s still cross-on. The afternoon drops to 3ft from the E. The energy is weak (82 and 143). The rest of the first week and into August is a long, drawn-out gap of tiny waves. The swell drops to 1.0ft on Saturday, August 1st, and the wind is light, but the energy is next to nothing (25-29). The pattern of weak, short-period swell and cross-onshore winds continues day after day, with nearly every session described as “poor surf conditions.” The energy values are consistently in the single or double digits, which are very weak.

There is a brief moment of cleanliness on Monday morning, August 3rd, with a light cross-offshore wind from the SSW, but the swell is a pathetic 1ft from the SE with a period of 7 seconds and energy of 19. It’s clean, but there’s nothing to ride.

The same story repeats on Saturday, August 8th, with a clean cross-offshore wind but a 1ft swell. Glassy but tiny.

The best of the worst, if you can call it that, might be the Tuesday morning, August 12th, with a 2ft swell from the SE and a light onshore wind from the ESE. The energy is 46 (weak). It’s still poor.

So, the highlight? There isn’t one. The largest swell on Thursday, July 30th, is ruined by strong onshore winds. The only clean days have almost no waves. This is a 16-day stretch where you’re better off finding a skatepark or checking the forecast again. The Wall is a consistent spot, but it doesn’t tend to stay poor for long, so hopefully the next outlook will be better.

Stay tuned, and don’t paddle out without checking the cam first.

Rusty.

Read more