13th Street Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the table for 13th Street over the next couple of weeks. I’ll be straight with you – this isn't looking like a time to get excited.

First up, the water temp is running at a very unusual 75°, a massive 8° warmer than what we'd normally expect for this time of year. We're talking well over three degrees different, so that's a big anomaly.

Now, the outlook is pretty bleak. We've got a long, dry spell on our hands. From now all the way until September 3rd, there's just no surf worth paddling out for. The swell is tiny and the wind is all wrong, making for poor conditions day after day. That's about three days of nothing.

Things barely start to tick over on the morning of Thursday, the 4th. There’s a little pulse of 3ft swell from the SSW, with a moderate wave energy reading of 410. The wind is cross-shore but light, so it might be borderline, but it's still rated as marginal. That afternoon, the wind swings onshore and kills it.

Friday the 5th morning is similar – a small 3ft SSW swell, but the wind is onshore again. It’s just not clean.

The standout, such as it is, comes on Sunday morning, the 6th of September. We get a tiny 1ft swell from the west. The period is short at 10 seconds, and the combined energy is a weak 45, so there's barely any power. However, look at the wind – it’s glassy. Light rain and a 3 mph north wind that's basically nothing. For a spot that's inconsistent and already small, a glassy window is a major positive. If you’ve got a log and you’re desperate for a knee-high dribbler, that’s your best shot for the whole period. 13th Street is a fairly exposed spot, and this tiny west swell is a long way from its optimum WNW direction, but it's the only time the ocean looks clean.

From Sunday afternoon through the rest of the forecast, it drops off again. We see days with no swell at all, and when it does pop back up in the second week, it’s back to poor surf with messy, choppy winds. Nothing worth chasing.

So, to wrap it up: there’s one brief, glassy moment on the morning of the 6th for the flat-day specialists. Otherwise, this is a blank run that’s pretty normal for a spot like this when the swell windows aren't lining up. Keep the board in the rack.

- Rusty

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