56th St Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get straight into it. We’re looking at a pretty bleak stretch ahead for 56th St. Honestly, the next 16 days are a tough watch. There’s not a single standout session in the whole window, so I’ll walk you through what little we’ve got and why it’s not worth rushing out for.

The entire forecast period starts with a few days of nothing worth paddling for. Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th are a write-off – messy cross-onshore winds, poor surf conditions, and the water is sitting around average for this time of year, so no surprises there. The swell is tiny and weak, with combined energy only reaching 248 (weak) on Thursday morning, and it’s just not doing anything.

Saturday the 5th sees a slight improvement with a light cross-onshore breeze and a bit of waist-high swell around 3ft from the SSW, but it’s still marginal. The period is a solid 16 seconds, which is a nice long groundswell, but the wind is on it all afternoon, and the scores are low. It’s a “maybe” if you’re desperate, but I wouldn’t call it good.

Sunday the 6th brings a touch more size – 5ft to 5ft from the S, with a 14-second period – but the wind is onshore and the combined energy bumps up to 944 (moderate) and 1058 (moderate). Still, the conditions are poor, and the wind is ruining any chance of clean waves. That’s a hard pass.

Monday the 7th morning is the closest thing to a half-decent moment in the whole run. The swell is 4ft from the S, 13 seconds, with a light cross-onshore breeze and combined energy of 1059 (moderate). The score is a 2 out of 10, which is the best we’ll see. But it’s still marginal, and by the afternoon the wind picks up and the quality tanks. Tuesday the 8th is similar but with a choppy afternoon.

From Wednesday the 9th onward, it’s a slow fade. Swell drops to 1ft to 3ft, periods vary but the wind is almost always cross-onshore or onshore, and the combined energy falls back into the weak range (153 to 627). The last few days of the window, from the 14th to the 18th, have a couple of long-period swells (18 to 22 seconds), but they’re tiny – 1ft to 2ft – and the wind is never right. The 18th shows a glimmer of cross-shore wind, but the swell is 2ft and the score is still only a 1.

Bottom line: there’s nothing here worth chasing. The best session is technically Monday morning the 7th, but even that is a marginal, barely-fun surf. If you’re a beginner, the swell never really gets above 5ft in a meaningful way, but the conditions are so poor it doesn’t matter. For experts, there’s nothing over 8ft to get excited about. This is a dead run for 56th St. Don’t hold your breath – forecasts can change, but right now, it’s a no-go.

Rusty.

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