Waihee Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here.

Look, I’m gonna be straight with you—this 16-day stretch for Waihee is a tough one. The whole outlook is a battle with messy onshore winds, and the swell, while not tiny, is mostly short-period and crumbly. There’s no classic “go day” that jumps off the page. Let’s walk through it.

Waihee (Maui) is a fairly consistent reef and point setup that ideally wants the swell from the NNE, but we’re getting the energy from the east and east-northeast the whole run. That mismatch, combined with a near-constant cross-onshore wind, just kills the quality.

We start off on Wednesday the 19th of August with no real surf on offer. The morning has 3ft of east swell at 8 seconds, but the wind is already on it. The afternoon isn’t much better—4ft, same short period, and a moderate cross-onshore making it choppy. Thursday the 20th morning is still weak, with only 2ft and a light onshore. That Thursday afternoon is the closest we get to a moment of calm—the swell drops to 3ft from the NNE, the wind goes glassy, and the energy is 101, which is weak, but for a brief window it might be surfable. It’s not a standout, but it’s the cleanest the place looks.

From there, the wind just builds. Friday the 21st stays small and cross-onshore. Saturday the 22nd has swell around 5ft to 5ft, but with 16 mph cross-onshore winds and rough conditions, it’s poor. Sunday the 23rd is when the energy starts climbing—the combined swell energy hits 754 in the morning and 1105 in the afternoon, with 7ft of east swell and a 12-second period. That longer period points to a groundswell, which is promising for the point and reef setup, but the wind is 19 to 22 mph from the east, cross-onshore and lumpy. It’s all blown out.

The first week of September brings bigger numbers but more mess. Tuesday the 1st of September has 8ft of east swell with a 13-second period—long-period groundswell, big energy (2252). That’s too big for beginners, and even for experts, the wind is still cross-onshore at 12 mph, making it a marginal, choppy mess. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual there.

After that, Wednesday the 2nd and Thursday the 3rd of September see 10ft and 7ft swells, but with rain showers, strong winds, and messy conditions. The energy is strong, but the setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The only true standout, if I’m being generous, is that glassy window on Thursday the 20th of August. It won’t be epic, but it’s a few clean, small waves. Everything else has that cross-onshore chop. For a consistent spot like Waihee, this is a rare blank run—it doesn’t stay this poor for long, but right now, it’s a waiting game.

Rusty.

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