57th Street Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let's get real about what’s on the table for 57th Street. I’ve got to be straight with you—right now, it’s looking pretty flat and uninspiring. The next week or so is almost entirely a write-off. There’s a long, quiet gap from now until the very end of August where the surf is just too small and messy to even paddle out for, with waves barely hitting 1ft to 1ft and energy readings barely ticking past 40 or 50 (weak energy). The water’s sitting at 77°, and that anomaly of 3° Fahrenheit warmer than normal is a bit unusual for this time of year, but that’s about the only highlight.

The first real chance of anything surfable shows up on Monday the 31st of August. It’s still nothing to write home about. In the morning, there’s a small 3ft swell from the SSW, with a period of 6 seconds—that’s short-period wind swell, not much punch. The combined energy is moderate (107), and with a light cross-off breeze from the west, it’ll be clean. But honestly, it’s ordinary waves and ordinary conditions. The afternoon gets even smaller with a 0.7ft, 18-second groundswell from the ESE, which is super long period. That kind of period can make waves peel weirdly at a sandbar, and the offshore wind from the NW won’t save how tiny it is.

From there, the second week into early September gets ugly. The swell tries to pick up, with readings getting over 3ft and even 5ft by the 5th and 6th, and energy jumping into the strong range (300+), but the wind goes completely wrong. Strong cross-shore breezes from the NE and ENE, often hitting 22-28 mph, turning that stretch into a lumpy, choppy mess. For a beach-and-sandbar setup like 57th Street, that’s more of a kite-surfing scene than a paddle-surfing scene. A clean-ish window pops up on Monday the 7th of September morning with a cross-off wind, and a 3ft ESE swell, but the energy is moderate (169) and conditions are still described as poor. The afternoon of the 7th is the closest thing to a standout we get: glassy wind, 3ft from the ESE, 10-second period, energy of 184 (moderate). It’s clean and glassy, which is a major positive, but the waves are still just “surfable but very ordinary.” For a beginner-friendly sandbar, it might be worth a look if you’re desperate.

All in all, there’s no real standout surf in this 16-day stretch. Keep your expectations low, check back in a day or two for a change, because with forecasts this dull, they tend to shift.

- Rusty

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