57th Street Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – this stretch at 57th Street is looking pretty flat and uninspiring for the next two weeks. There’s a big gap of nothing really worth paddling out for until the second week, so don’t get your hopes up too early.

We start off now with Saturday the 11th, and it’s a grim one. Tiny 0.3m (about 1ft) swell from the SSE, a weak 6-second period, and combined energy of just 15, so barely a ripple. Add in a risk of thunderstorms and a cross-onshore breeze, and you’ve got poor surf conditions. The water is sitting at 24° (about 76°F), which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, but that’s about the only positive. Sunday the 12th isn’t any better – a bit more height at 0.9m (about 3ft), but it’s short-period windswell from the east, still choppy with cross-onshore winds. Monday the 13th and Tuesday the 14th are small and weak, with a slight improvement in wind on Monday morning (light offshore from the ESE), but the swell is only 0.8m (about 3ft) and 6 seconds – not enough to get excited about.

We actually get a bit of a clean spell Wednesday the 15th morning, with a cross-offshore breeze from the WSW and clean conditions, but the swell is only 0.4m (about 1ft) from the SE, period 8 seconds, and combined energy a measly 27. Still poor surf. Thursday the 16th and Friday the 17th have some offshore winds, but the swell is tiny – 0.5m to 0.6m (about 2-2ft) – and the period is short. It’s clean but barely surfable. Then from Saturday the 18th through Sunday the 19th, the swell drops to almost nothing – 0.1m (about 0.3ft) – with messy onshore winds. Total write-off.

Now, we finally see a pulse of energy around Monday the 20th. The morning brings a 1.0m (about 3ft) swell from the south, 7-second period, and combined energy hits 100 – that’s still only moderate, but it’s the first real sign of life. The wind is light from the north, cross-offshore, and conditions are clean. Monday afternoon goes glassy, with 0.8m (about 3ft) from the SSE, but it’s still very ordinary. Tuesday the 21st through Wednesday the 22nd sees the swell build a bit – 1.1m (about 4ft) from the SSE, with combined energy climbing to 102 and then 219, but the wind is cross or cross-onshore, spoiling the shape. Highest energy comes Thursday the 23rd and Friday the 24th, with 1.5m to 1.7m (about 5-6ft) from the south, period 7-8 seconds, and combined energy up to 475. That’s moderate energy, but it's all blown out by strong cross-onshore winds from the ESE. For a beginner-friendly sandbar break, anything over 1.5m (about 5ft) can be too much, and with the wind on it, the setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. Saturday the 25th still has some size but the conditions are poor, and by Sunday the 26th it fades back to 0.7m (about 2ft) with weak energy.

Honestly, there’s no standout session here. The best on offer is probably Monday the 20th morning, when you get a clean 1.0m (3ft) south swell with light cross-offshore wind, but it’s still very ordinary. That’s your only real window of decent conditions in the whole 16 days. For the rest, it’s a long, flat, or blown-out run. It’s one of those patches where you’re better off waiting for the next forecast update.

Rusty.

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