21st Street (Miami) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, and I gotta be straight with you—lookin' at the next 16 days for our neck of the woods, it’s a tough pill to swallow. The finder only put one spot on the map, 21st Street (Miami), and honestly, it's a barren stretch. There ain't a single session that gets a green light for quality surf. We're staring down a solid 16-day gap from now through the end of August with no worthwhile waves on offer—just tiny, gutless swell and poor conditions day after day. The consistent lack of any real energy is pretty normal for this area during this time of year, so a blank run like this isn't a huge shock.

Let’s run through it. The water temp is sitting at a balmy 87°, which feels a touch warmer than normal for mid-August, so at least the paddle won't be a shock to the system. But that’s where the good news ends. All through Sunday the 16th and Monday the 17th, we’ve got ankle-slapping 0.7 ft swell from the east with a short 8-second period. Combined energy is laughable—stuck in the low teens (12 on Sunday morning). Winds are mostly onshore or cross-onshore, making it choppy and messy.

Tuesday the 18th morning gives a brief moment of glass—dead calm—but that 0.7 ft, 8-second E swell is just not doing anything. It’s flat, plain and simple. The rest of that week is a rinse-and-repeat of tiny 0.7 ft waves, cross-off winds here and there keeping it clean, but there's nothing to ride. Even with clean conditions, you can't surf what isn't there.

As we head into the second week, the swell tries to bump up a touch. Around the 23rd and 24th of August, we see 2 ft from the SSE and ESE, but the period is a terrible 3-4 seconds. That’s pure wind chop, not a wave you’d paddle for. Combined energy barely ticks above 20 (21 on the 23rd afternoon). Winds stay onshore and brisk.

Then from the 26th onward, a long-period swell tries to creep in—16 seconds on the 26th morning, with the energy climbing into the 40s and 60s (45 on the 26th morning, 61 on the 27th afternoon). That sounds promising for a second, but the height is still just 1.0 ft to 1 ft. That long period on a beach break like 21st Street tends to slide straight through without peeling properly. And with onshore winds almost the whole time, it’s a no-go.

The only sniff of anything half-decent might be the morning of Saturday the 29th, with a light cross-shore from the NNE and 1 ft E swell, but the energy drops back to 33. Not worth getting wet for.

So there it is, folks. The whole 16-day window is a write-off for surfing at 21st Street. If you’re desperate for a paddle, bring a longboard and your patience. Otherwise, forecasts can change, but for now, hang loose and don’t hold your breath.

Rusty.

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