Croatan Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the table for Croatan over the next couple of weeks.

Quite honestly, we’re looking at a long, painful stretch of flat, crummy conditions before anything even remotely worth paddling out for shows up. The first week and a half is a write-off. From Thursday the 10th all the way through to the morning of Tuesday the 23rd, it’s consistently poor – tiny dribbles, short period slop, and mostly onshore or cross-onshore winds. You’ll see a bit of a pulse around the 21st and 22nd with swell heights creeping up to 5 ft to 6 ft, but the wind is from the ENE and NE, blowing straight onshore or cross-onshore, making it a choppy, lumpy mess. The combined energy gets up to around 290, but it’s just not surfable with that wind. For a beach/jetty setup like Croatan, that’s more of a kite-surfing scene than a paddling one.

The real story, and the only thing that gets my heart beating, is what’s brewing for the end of the month. We’ve got a solid window opening up on the morning of Wednesday the 24th of September. The swell kicks up to 8 ft from the E, with a period of 8 seconds, and it’s still clean with cross-offshore winds from the NW. The combined energy is already a strong 701, and the water is sitting at 80°F – which is much warmer than normal for this time of year, making for a really pleasant session.

But the true standout, the one you’ve got to circle on your calendar, is the morning of the 25th of September. Friday morning we’re looking at a solid 10 ft of swell from the ESE, still with that clean cross-offshore breeze from the SW. The combined energy hits a massive 1094. That’s a serious amount of power. However, and this is a big however, that’s too much size for a beach/jetty break like Croatan unless you’re an expert. For the average surfer, those waves will be closing out and dangerous. The afternoon settles a little to 8 ft, but it’s still a powerful ESE swell. Keep it in mind, but only if you’ve got the skills.

For the rest of the run, the mornings and afternoons of the 24th and 25th stay clean but the swell drops off. The 24th afternoon is a solid 8 ft, and the 25th afternoon is still 8 ft. It’s clean, but the size is the limiting factor.

So, to sum it up: the first twelve days are a total bust. The 24th and 25th are the only dates worth a look, but the 25th morning is the big, powerful, expert-only peak. Keep your fingers crossed the forecasts hold.

Rusty, signing off.

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