55th Street Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it. This is the outlook for the 55th Street Pier area, your local spot. Let’s be real, the next 16 days are looking pretty flat for the most part. We’ve got a long stretch of small, weak, and often messy surf ahead. The water’s sitting at 76°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won’t be freezing your toes off waiting for a set.

The first real chance to get wet comes Friday morning, July 17th, but it’s tiny. We’re talking about 0.3ft of swell from the east with a super long period of 15 seconds. The combined energy is a measly 8. It’s glassy, dead calm, so it’ll be clean, but there’s just no power. It’s a pond.

We then go through a whole week of nothing much. Saturday, Sunday, and Monday all have waves under 0.7ft. The wind is all over the place, from cross-shore to onshore, with some risk of thunderstorms. It’s a write-off. The energy is in the single digits or low teens. It’s a real struggle.

Things get a tiny bit more interesting around Tuesday, July 21st, with the swell pushing up to 3ft from the southeast, but the period is a short 5 seconds. The combined energy hits 40. It’s cross-shore, choppy, and messy. It’s a beach/jetty break, so this short, weak windswell is just going to be a bumpy, unorganized mess. Not worth paddling out for.

The following week, from the 22nd to the 28th, is a real mixed bag of flat spells and tiny, poor-quality waves. The best you can hope for is a few clean mornings with offshore wind, but the swell is almost non-existent. On the 22nd, we get a fresh offshore breeze from the west, but the swell is 0.3ft from the east. The energy is a pathetic 1. It’s a kitesurfing setup, not a paddling one.

Towards the end of the month, Thursday the 30th and Friday the 31st offer some clean, glassy conditions with cross-offshore winds, but the swell is only 1ft to 1ft from the east. The energy is low. It’s clean, but it’s just not enough to ride.

The true standout, if you can call it that, is the very end of the outlook. On Saturday, August 1st, we have a glassy afternoon with a tiny little pulse of 2ft from the northeast. The period is a short 4 seconds, and the energy is only 17. It’s a novelty wave for an experienced longboarder or a beginner. But it’s the best we’ve got.

Overall, the 55th Street Pier is not delivering. The first 10 days are a total bust. The second week has a few glimmers of clean water, but the swell is just too small to do anything meaningful. If you’re desperate for a paddle, maybe the afternoon of August 1st, but don’t expect to get wet. For the most part, this stretch of coast is looking like a kitesurfing zone rather than a surfing one.

Stay safe, and don’t waste the petrol.

Rusty

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