Waihee Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s break down what’s shaping up for us over the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, it’s a tough stretch. We’re looking at a long, dry run of poor conditions that stretches from now all the way through to the end of next week. The trade winds are hammering us from the ENE, blowing cross-on shore for pretty much every session, and that’s got the water all chopped up and messy. The swell is coming from the wrong direction too, straight onshore, which just adds to the frustration. For days on end, the wave energy is weak to moderate, with the combined energy of all swells hanging around the 100 to 200 mark. It’s the kind of setup that’ll have you checking your wax collection instead of your board.

The first real glimmer of hope—and I mean the *only* standout in this whole 16-day window—is on Sunday, August 16th. The morning is still a washout with a cross-shore wind and a big 10ft swell from the east, but the afternoon is where it gets interesting. The wind swings around to a light SE breeze, going cross-offshore, and the swell jumps to 12ft from the ENE. That’s a significant jump in energy, with the combined energy of all swells directed here hitting a massive 2452. This is expert territory, no doubt. The water temp is sitting at 80°, right about average for the time of year, so nothing wild there.

The spot to watch is Waihee (Waihee), a reef and point break that’s fairly consistent and exposed to the swell. The optimum swell direction for this spot is NNE, and while the swell is coming from the ENE, that cross-off wind is going to be the key to cleaning up that big groundswell (period of 10 seconds). With a long period swell like that, this point break setup is the right place to be. It’ll be lined up and powerful. The crowds can be an issue here sometimes, and with a setup this good, you can bet it’ll be busy.

After that Sunday afternoon, it’s back to the grind. The winds pick right back up on Monday, and the conditions fall apart again. The rest of the second week is more of the same: cross-on trade winds, moderate energy (the combined energy of all swells drops back to the 100-300 range), and generally poor surf. The swell sticks around the 3ft to 5ft mark, but it’s just not clean enough to get excited about. It’s a long stretch of meh.

So, to sum it up: if you’re an expert who can handle a big, powerful wave, the Sunday afternoon session on the 16th is your only real shot. Don’t waste your energy on the rest of it.

Rusty.

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