Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 13 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 17 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 5s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 19 Aug, 8AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 11s period, SE swell with 96 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 17 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 5s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Croatan this week:
The surf forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 17) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.2m and 5s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Croatan in the next 16 days are 0.6m 11s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 8AM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 5s period and expected on Monday (Aug 17) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Mon 17th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 5s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Mon 17th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 5s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s on the cards for Croatan over the next couple of weeks.
Well, I gotta be straight with you – the next week and a half is looking pretty flat and sad. We’re staring down a long, dry spell here. From Wednesday afternoon all the way through to Saturday the 23rd of August, there’s basically nothing worth paddling out for. We’re talking tiny dribbles of swell, mostly under 2 ft, and with weak energy readings mostly in the teens and twenties (9 to 63 range). The wind is all over the shop, often onshore or cross-onshore, just chopping things up. You’ll be bobbing around on a log for no good reason. Hang in there, though – it tends not to stay this poor forever.
Now, things finally perk up just a little on Sunday the 23rd of August. It’s not a classic, but it’s the first sign of life. We’ve got a clean morning with a light offshore wind out of the SSW, and the swell is a tiny 1 ft from the ESE with a period of 9 seconds. The energy is still weak (44), but the conditions are clean. It’s surfable, but very ordinary. Honestly, for a beginner spot like Croatan, it’s a chance to get wet without getting hammered.
That’s about it for the whole run. There’s no standout swell, no big groundswell to get excited about. Just a whole lot of waiting. The water temp is sitting at a balmy 81°, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year, so at least you won’t freeze while you’re sitting there.
Keep your eyes on the forecasts – things can change. But for now, it’s a waiting game.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastSome drizzle, heaviest during Fri afternoon. Warm (max 31°C on Thu afternoon, min 24°C on Fri afternoon). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 61mm), heaviest during Mon night. Warm (max 35°C on Mon afternoon, min 23°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 13 | Friday 14 | Saturday 15 | Sunday 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | ||||||||||||||
Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 5 | NNE 3 | NE 4 | NE 4 | NE 4 | ENE 5 | ENE 6 | SSE 4 | S 5 | S 6 | SE 7 | SSE 6 | ESE 13 | SE 9 | ESE 11 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 12 | 24 | 12 | 13 | 76 | 15 | 13 | 33 | 35 | 30 | 51 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | on | cross-on |
High Tide | 8:17PM1.30m | 8:44AM1.17m | 9:05PM1.27m | 9:33AM1.21m | 9:50PM1.21m | 10:21AM1.21m | 10:33PM1.13m | 11:07AM1.20m | 11:16PM1.04m | 11:53AM1.16m | 11:58PM0.95m | 12:38PM1.12m | 00:42AM0.87m | ||||||
Low Tide | 2:39AM-0.07m | 2:48PM-0.08m | 3:23AM-0.08m | 3:38PM-0.04m | 4:05AM-0.06m | 4:28PM0.02m | 4:47AM-0.02m | 5:19PM0.10m | 5:30AM0.05m | 6:10PM0.17m | 6:14AM0.11m | 7:04PM0.23m | |||||||
 |  |  |  | |  | | | | | | |  | | |  | | | | |
 | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — |
 | 7:59 | — | 7:57 | — | — | 7:55 | — | — | 7:54 | — | — | 7:53 | — | — | 7:52 | — | — | 7:51 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | — | — | 53 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 29 | 31 | 29 | 27 | 28 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 27 | 33 | 24 | 28 | 35 | 24 | 26 | 28 | 27 |
Feels °C | 29 | 30 | 33 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 28 | 33 | 24 | 30 | 36 | 23 | 30 | 31 | 30 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 5 | ESE 8 | NE 4 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ENE 6 | NE 5 | NE 6 | S 6 | SE 7 | SSE 6 | SE 8 | SE 9 | S 4 |
| kJ | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 15 | 13 | 33 | 20 | 26 | 9 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 7 | SE 5 | E 7 | E 13 | SE 8 | SSE 5 | ESE 8 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | — | SE 7 | ESE 9 | E 15 | ESE 13 | ESE 12 | ESE 11 |
| kJ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 7 | — | 8 | 8 | 4 | 18 | 30 | 51 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 5 | E 8 | E 10 | E 7 | E 9 | E 12 | SSE 5 | E 8 | — | SSE 5 | S 6 | — | — | — | — | ESE 9 | ESE 13 | — | — |
| kJ | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 8 | 35 | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | SSE 3 | — | NNE 3 | — | NE 4 | NE 4 | ENE 5 | — | SSE 4 | S 5 | WSW 4 | — | ENE 3 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | 2 | — | 8 | — | 7 | 12 | 24 | — | 13 | 76 | 2 | — | 4 | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1239 | 1239 | 852 | 808 | 1966 | 138 | 2892 | 1374 | 2065 | 1242 | 1129 | 927 | 217 | 4 | 137 | 349 | 78 | 165 | 33 |
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Croatan surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Croatan Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Croatan provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Croatan can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Croatan surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Croatan) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Croatan may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Croatan is 7 km (4 miles) from the city of Virginia Beach. If you plan a vacation in Virginia, look for hotels and other accommodation in Virginia Beach. Virginia Beach has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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