Three Peaks Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty. I’m not gonna sugarcoat it—this forecast is a rough one. We’ve got a long stretch of crud ahead, and the only real pulse of swell doesn’t show up until the first week of September. So hunker down, because it’s gonna be a flat, windy, and frustrating wait for most of the next two weeks.

The first day that even looks like surf is Friday, August 21st, and even then, it’s barely a whisper. A tiny 2ft WSW swell with a short 8-second period dribbles into Three Peaks in the morning. The wind is a gentle cross-offshore from the NNE, which cleans things up, but don’t expect any power. The combined wave energy is a weak 71, so it’s small and gutless. A beginner might snag a couple of soft rolls, but it’s not gonna get anyone excited.

Saturday, August 22nd, and Sunday, August 23rd, are a total write-off. Swell drops to 1ft with energy down in the 20s. Sunday morning actually goes glassy, which is a beautiful thing to see, but there’s simply no water moving. You’d be floating on a pond.

We then hit a dead zone. From Monday, August 24th, all the way through to the end of the month, the surf is practically non-existent. Waves rarely break over 2ft, and when they do, the wind is howling from the wrong direction. Tuesday, August 25th, afternoon sees a bump up to 3ft from the WSW with a 10-second period and 212 energy, but it’s buried under a choppy, cross-onshore mess. The wind is a fresh 12 mph from the S. Forget it. This stretch is a proper blank run of poor conditions.

Things get a little more interesting, but only for the brave, on Tuesday, September 1st. A solid 10ft swell from the WSW hits Three Peaks in the morning. The period is 8 seconds, so it’s wind swell, but the combined energy jumps to 899 – that’s a serious step up in power. The wind turns cross-offshore from the NNW, which should clean the face up nicely. However, I’ve gotta be honest: at 10ft, this is for experts only. The short period means it’ll be a heavy, close-out dump on a beach break like Three Peaks. It’s a true standout in this forecast for size, but it’s not one for the faint-hearted. The crowd profile at Three Peaks is “sometimes,” so you might have a few others out there with you. The afternoon drops to 8ft, still big, still powerful, still for experts.

The water temperature on the first day of the forecast (August 18th) is 69°F with a 4°F anomaly. That’s very unusual—much warmer than normal for this time of year. It’s a weird side note to a mostly grim outlook.

So, bottom line: the first week and a half is a no-go for any real surfing. The only standout is the big swell on September 1st, but it’s a heavy, expert-only affair. If you’re a beginner, stay home until the second week of September. The forecast can change, but this is what we’ve got for now.

Rusty.

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