Westport-The Corner Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s lining up for Westport-The Corner over the next 16 days.

Alright, to be straight with you, the first week or so is pretty grim. We’ve got a long stretch of small, choppy, and messy surf with cross-onshore winds messing up the face. The wave energy is moderate at best, hitting around 385 (moderate) on Thursday the 23rd, but the wind is on it, so it’s not worth getting excited about. The water temp is sitting at 58°, which is about average for this time of year, so nothing unusual there.

From Thursday the 23rd all the way through to about Tuesday the 5th of August, it’s a real run of poor to marginal conditions. The swell hangs around 2 ft to 3 ft, mostly from the SW or NW, with periods all over the shop – often short, below 8 seconds, which means weak, gutless waves. The wind is mostly cross-onshore or cross-shore, and even when it goes onshore or offshore, it’s light but the surf is still small and questionable. Saturday the 25th has a bit of a spike in energy (789 – moderate), but it’s a messy SW wind and the swell is only 3 ft with a 21-second period. That long period is a groundswell, but at a beach/jetty setup like this, it’ll break too straight and closed out. Not a goer.

There’s a gap of about 10 days where there’s really nothing to recommend. The best of a bad bunch is maybe Monday morning the 27th – a 3 ft SW swell, 18-second period, light onshore wind, but the score is low and it’s only marginal. Still, that’s the closest to rideable we get in the first week. The consistency is listed as “consistent,” so it’s not like the waves are absent, but they’re just not any good.

Now, looking into the second week, things get a little more interesting but still not great. Wednesday the 6th of August has a pulse: 5 ft from the WSW, 9-second period, light cross-shore wind. That’s the biggest swell of the whole forecast, but it’s short period and still marginal. The energy is moderate (475). Thursday the 7th has 5 ft to 5 ft, still from the W, with similar cross-shore wind. The swell is getting up there, but the period is short (9 seconds), so it’ll be lumpy and a bit of a handful. For beginners, 5 ft is a bit much, and with the wind, it’s only really for those who can handle chop.

The standout, if you can call it that, is Thursday the 6th of August morning. 5 ft from the WSW, light cross-shore wind, and the highest swell of the period. The energy is moderate (475). The wind is light, so it’ll be the cleanest of the lot, but it’s still a short-period swell from a less-than-ideal direction for the corner. The optimum is SW, and we’re getting WSW, so it’s a bit off. Still, if you’re desperate, that’s your shot. Crowds are “sometimes” here, so you might have a few others around, but it won’t be packed.

After that, the swell drops off again into the 1 ft to 2 ft range with poor wind. So, overall, it’s a lean run. The surf is small, messy, and mostly not worth the paddle. If you’re a beginner, the first few days are too small and choppy, and the bigger stuff on the 6th is too big. For experts, the 6th might be a session, but don’t expect anything epic. It’s a beach/jetty setup, so with the wind and short period, it might be more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Rusty.

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