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Surfline for the cams mostly and the reports. SI for the forecasts, as well as the political, medical, music, food/beverage, firearms, sports, automotive, and philosophical discussions.
But it comes down to knowing the break to catch the "windows of opportunity" during these flat spells.

 

O Barry:

 

cam's HAVE been invented, you know

you can also tell but average SI thræde activity.

 

James Wieland ✔ @SurfnWeatherman Possibilities for a north swell next week! Cold front pushes off the coast & stalls, producing some NE fetch #flsurf
11:37 AM - 18 Aug 2016

 

James Wieland of WPTV in West Palm Beach gives a good breakdown of swell and wind direction here and upcoast. Pretty accurate, with some good meteorology thrown in.

SwellInfo is pretty good 3 days out, and has the buoy link. NOAA is always useful but too cookie cutter and the winds are wrong lots of time regarding subtle things like direction and speed, nothing important. Good enough for government work.

I take all that, mix it with a grain of salt, add three teaspoons of the latest Betty model, divide it by the Euro models (they rule), and there you have it.

 

There are some uses to which tax dollars SHOULD be used. Bouys are one of them. Coast Guard as well, and so too the military. But social programs just foster cheats, theft etc.
Use the money where the Constitution originally pointed ......and no more.

 

I'm kinda with barry here. Iv been agreeing with allot he has to say lately. Bouys are deffinitly the way to go. Bouy and the weather. When I first learned to surf, my uncle sort of showed me the ropes. Although he didn't exactly teach me in the water. Had to figure that out myself. But anyway, when id visit him we would wake up early and watch the weather channel. That's how he would determine if it's worth going or not.

As far as sites go. SI is pretty accurate. I find that they usually over call the wind though. Surfline will often downplay things unless it's a big swell event. And that's the only sites Iv ever used. When I'm feeling lazy SI gives me a good idea of what's going on, but when I wake up its the bouy and a wind check that gets me heading towards the beach or not. Hell, I never use surfline at all anymore and SI I use just to give me an idea of when to pay closer attention to the bouys then usual.

The most important tool is local knowledge and your own eyes. How certain spots act at certain tides. So many times I head to a certain spot when forecasts say flat, and I end up scoring thigh-waist high fun. Right board, right spot, right time. That's what it's about.

I kinda like surf forecasting sites. Chest high and onshore, SI is all red. People look and say oh no red means bad. I check the wind, it's freaking 7mph. Beach is empty. I get solid waves.

 

On another note...didn't we just do this treade a coupla months ago?

No offense, Dsup

 

Exactly....there are a couple of other sites to....I do like to look at the model forecasts and form my own opinion, most of the time I'm right with all of the other stuff mixed in the batter.

 

No offense taken, not my thread

 

Hahhaha, whhhooops...I mean murdoc...two wks in to a four wk vaca ...time to put the lectronics down

 

Yeah, earlier this year. It comes down to knowing your break.

 

Make the forecast great again. What have you got to lose folks?

 

I hear ya... but, look at today's forecast for Maria's Beach and the forecast for the next several days Now check Punta Higuera forecast. Jobos is 1-2' and swarmy.

 

Yeah, but.......it is PR, land of the lazy. I am sure they do not keep up with their bouy maintenance down there. Hell, even Surfline is unable to maintain viable cam service!!
Now, having said that, both Punta Higueras and Maria thrive on different swell directions; that northwest corner of the island is EXACTLY where the dividing line is--you can actually SEE the different wave directions and currents. That division does get over-ridden on larger swells, however.

Also, bouy 41043 is 175 miles northeast of PR; pretty far out but works as an early indicator for what is in the making. The bouy NE of St Martin right now is reading 3.6' for 12 seconds; PR 41043 is reading 8 seconds....the difference there is that the 12 seconds is an advanced warning a solid period swell from Fiona will be hitting PR in a couple of days.......hopefully for them. Tempting to grab a flight!!

 

Surfline forecast for the next several days is FLAT. Swell Info is calling 0-1 as minimal, not flat.

 

Okay, will be interesting to see what the difference will be--it will take a few days for surf from Fiona to reach Punta Higueras area. Glad you pointed this out to me--it will allow me to gauge my own rate of accuracy for the area.
FYI, I do not rely on ANY forecast that is out more than 3 days--error rate is way too high, no matter who it is from.

 

+2

 

Given the overall weakness and the track of Fiona you can most likely count out anything over 2 ft. at Maria's and Punta Higuera (and that is being generous). Your best bet would be Surfers Beach and eastward. Gaston or Hermine have much more potential at this point.

 

Perhaps, we will see. Fiona could all of a sudden change ans step up. At least that is what I am hoping for!! Presently, the swells headed to that NE side of the Caribbean are in the 3.5' range, but they could faze out. I will wait and see if either storm gives a swell worthy of flying down. Fortunately, I do have time to go.