Udo Shrine Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Oi, Rusty here. Look, I'm gonna be straight with you – this forecast for Udo Shrine (Japan) is a bit of a rollercoaster, and not in a good way. We've got a huge window of nothing but oversized, wind-chopped mess before a couple of tiny windows of hope. Let's get into it.

The overall pattern is all about a massive pulse of long-period groundswell that arrives way too big for this reef break, combined with brutal onshore winds. The water temp is about average for the time of year, so no worries there.

The first real chance to paddle out, and honestly, the only truly good session on offer, is Sunday morning, the 2nd of August. It's not big, only 2 feet of swell from the ESE, but the period is a very long 16 seconds. That means the energy is deep and powerful for the size. The real winner here is the wind – it's glassy, dead calm from the SSE at 3 mph. The combined energy is 260 (moderate), but with that glassy surface, the sets will be clean and lined up. It's a bit inconsistent, and crowds are often a thing here, but for a Sunday morning surf, this is a gem.

The rest of the first week and into the second is a write-off. Starting Sunday afternoon and through until late on Tuesday the 11th, the swell just gets blown out. From Monday the 3rd, the wind swings onshore from the NE and howls, building to over 25 mph. The swell pumps up from 5 feet to a massive 28 feet by Thursday the 6th, with combined energy readings hitting 86,920 (very strong). This is too big, even for experts. The period is 16-18 seconds, which is very long period groundswell. For a reef break, that could be epic, but not when it's getting hammered by a near gale. This setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

We then get a slow, messy drop-off through the 8th, 9th, and 10th of August. The swell is still big and the wind is still onshore, creating poor, choppy conditions.

After a long gap of poor conditions, the next flicker of life comes Thursday morning, the 13th of August. The swell drops to 4 feet from the E, with a 12-second period, and the combined energy is weak at 471. But once again, the wind is glassy, from the ESE at 3 mph. It's a small, clean wave. The afternoon also looks okay with a light cross-offshore wind from the S. This is a promising but less certain window due to the long-range forecast.

After that, the forecast gets ugly again. Friday the 14th and Saturday the 15th have some size (6 feet to 8 feet) but with cross-onshore winds, making it lumpy. The final few days of the outlook are a total bust – tiny, weak swell with onshore winds.

So, keep your eyes on that Sunday morning, the 2nd of August for the stand-out session. The Thursday the 13th is a backup for a small, clean wave. The rest is a hard pass.

Rusty.

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