57th Street Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ve gotta be straight with you – this 16-day window for 57th Street is a tough one. There’s no real standout session, and for most of the run, you’re looking at pretty ordinary conditions. The water’s sitting at a very unusual 77.4°F, which is much warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won’t need a thick wetsuit.

The pattern starts off flat and stays that way for a while. Monday the 7th of September has tiny 1.3ft easterly swell with a cross-on breeze, weak energy (31), and honestly, it’s poor. Tuesday the 8th drops even smaller to 0.7ft, and though the wind swings cross-off or cross, the swell’s just not there. Wednesday the 9th sees a little pulse – 2.0ft on the morning from the SSW, period a short 4 seconds, but it’s cross-shore and choppy. By the afternoon, a fresh cross-on breeze hits 19 mph and the swell bumps to 3.3ft, but it’s lumpy and messy. Not worth paddling out.

Thursday the 10th offers a small glimmer. The morning brings 3.3ft from the SSW, period 6 seconds, and clean cross-off winds. Energy is still weak (92), but it’s the cleanest the wave’s looked in days. The afternoon actually gets a “surfable” rating – 2.6ft with light cross-off breeze and glassy texture. If you’re desperate and a beginner, it’s a knee-high dribbler that might be fun, but nothing to write home about. That’s probably the best of a lean first week.

From Friday the 11th through to Monday the 14th, it’s back to poor conditions. Swell hovers around 1.0ft to 1.6ft, mostly onshore or cross-on, with a few glassy moments on the morning of the 14th (1.6ft, SE, 9 seconds, glassy) – but still, it’s barely a ripple. Energy readings sit in the teens to low 40s, so weak. Tuesday the 15th brings a bit more size at 2.6ft from the south, but the onshore and cross-on breeze from the SSE at 12-16 mph makes it choppy and uninviting.

The second week doesn’t change the story much. Wednesday the 16th has clean cross-off winds in the morning with 2.0ft, and a nice offshore breeze from the NW on the afternoon pushes 2.6ft from the ENE – period a short 4 seconds, but it’s clean. That’s a promising but less certain hope if you’re a beginner just wanting to get wet. Thursday the 17th stays small and clean. Saturday the 19th actually shows a couple of “surfable” ratings: 2.6ft in the morning with light cross-off, then 3.0ft on the afternoon with glassy conditions and only 3 mph breeze. That’s the best of the whole run, really – small, clean, but still just 3.0ft from the NE, period 6 seconds, weak energy (89). Good for a beginner log or a soft-top, but not much else.

The last couple of days, Sunday the 20th through Tuesday the 22nd, fade back to weak and choppy. The swell doesn’t get above 3.3ft, and the winds turn cross-on or onshore. Energy finally cracks 100 on the 22nd afternoon (124) with 3.3ft from the ENE, but it’s a moderate cross-onshore mess – not one for the paddle-in crew.

Bottom line: this is a long stretch of small, weak, and mostly poor surf. The best bet is the glassy Saturday the 19th afternoon, or the clean Thursday the 10th afternoon for a tiny wave. If you’re a beginner, those windows are your chance. For anyone else, it’s a sandbar that’s barely waking up. The conditions are more suited to a kite session if the wind picks up than a proper surf. Stay patient – forecasts can change, and it tends not to stay this flat forever.

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