Tices Sholls Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s take a look at what we’ve got. Straight up, this is a quiet run for Tices Sholls. For the first week and a half, it’s all tiny bumps and messy wind. There’s one little window that’s worth the walk, so let’s break it down.

The whole 16-day window kicks off on Wednesday, August 12th with barely a ripple. We’re talking 1ft swell from the south, period a snappy 5 seconds, and a north-easterly breeze making it choppy. Not worth paddling out for. That sets the tone for days. Thursday the 13th looks a bit cleaner in the morning with a light west cross-off wind and a little shape, but the swell is still tiny at 2ft and the period is a weak 4 seconds. The combined energy is just 19 – barely a bump.

The weekend and the whole next week are more of the same. Little 1ft to 2ft waves, mostly messy directions, and winds that just won’t play nice. The energy stays in the double digits until Sunday the 16th afternoon, when a little pulse from the south hits 5ft, but it’s getting hammered by a fresh 22 mph south-southwest cross-breeze, so the quality is poor.

The first real standout – if you can call it that – comes on Monday the 17th of August in the afternoon. It’s not big, about 2ft from the south with a 7-second period, but the magic is the wind. It goes glassy. A light south-southwest breeze, almost nothing. For a beginner sandbar, that is the cleanest you’ll see. The combined energy is a mellow 51, so it’s not powerful, but it is surfable and actually pleasant. This is the best wave on offer over the whole run. Just don’t expect any punch.

After that, it goes back to poor conditions. Tuesday and Wednesday are cross-shore or onshore junk. Thursday the 19th morning has a clean-up with 2ft swell from the southeast and a long 11-second period, giving it a bit of push (energy 106), but it’s still beginner-friendly. The wind is light south-west, so it’s clean, but it won’t hold – the afternoon turns onshore again.

From the 20th through to the 27th of August, it’s a long, flat, windy gap. Swells are tiny, under 2ft most of the time, with poor winds and lots of chop. There’s a lift on Saturday the 22nd with 5ft swell from the south and moderate energy (205 in the morning), but it’s cross-breezy and lumpy. Not recommended for paddle surfing. The setup there, with those wind speeds and a beach break, would actually suit kite surfing better than a normal surf session. The very end of the window, Tuesday the 25th and Wednesday the 26th, has some clean-offshore moments (southwest or westerly flow) but the swell is tiny, 1ft to 3ft, and weak.

So, bottom line: If you’re a beginner wanting dead-calm, tiny waves, the Monday the 17th afternoon glass-off at Tices Sholls is your best bet. For everyone else, this is a long, quiet run. It’s not unusual for this spot to go flat like this, but forecasts can always change.

Rusty.

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