56th St Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, this is Rusty. Let’s have a look at what’s on offer here at 56th St (Virginia Beach).

Straight up, I’ve got to be honest – this is a tough stretch ahead. The whole 16-day forecast is pretty much a write-off, with only a couple of tiny windows that might, just might, give you something to paddle for. The first real chance of a wave doesn’t show up until Friday, September 18th, and even then it’s marginal. Before that, it’s all poor surf with clean, tiny knee-high chop from the SW, and the wind is mostly cross-onshore, so don’t bother.

The water is cooking at 72°F – that’s much warmer than normal for this time of year, nearly 5°F above average, so you can leave the spring suit at home.

Now, the best of a pretty average bunch. The standouts, if you can call them that, are the mornings of Friday the 18th and Saturday the 19th. On Friday the 18th, the swell is a weak 2 ft from the SSW with a long period of 19 seconds, but the combined energy is moderate at best (431). The tide might be iffy, and the wind is glassy-light onshore, so it’s not clean. Honestly, it’s a marginal day.

Then Saturday the 19th morning is the pick of the lot. You’ve got that same 2 ft SW groundswell, period at 18 seconds, and the wind goes glassy – absolutely flat calm. That’s a major positive. Combined energy sits at 376, still moderate, but that glassy surface will make the tiny waves look a lot better than they are. It’s still small, and the swell is long-period, so at a sheltered beach break like this, it might be a bit too straight and weak. It’s a gamble, but the cleanest gamble in the whole outlook.

After that, we’re back to poor conditions right through to the end of the 24th. No real standout gems here. The crowds are possible at 56th St, which is never ideal when the surf is so slim.

Signing off, Rusty.

Read more