Folly Beach Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it.

Right now, Folly Beach Pier is having a tough stretch. Honestly, for the first week or more, the surf is just not offering much for a paddle surfer. The waves are tiny – mostly around 1 ft to 1 ft – and the conditions are messy. We’ve got a risk of thunderstorms, cross-shore and cross-onshore winds from the SW and S, making it choppy and bumpy. Even when the wind goes light or glassy, the swell is just too weak to do anything with. There’s a real gap in quality here; from the start of the period through to around September 23rd, it’s pretty much a write-off for decent waves.

The combined swell energy is super low (17 to 34) for most of this stretch, so there’s just no push. The water temp is 82°, about 1° warmer than average for September, so it’s comfortable but that’s about the only good news for a while.

The first real glimmer of anything hopeful doesn’t show until Wednesday, September 23rd. On the morning of the 23rd, we see a clean, cross-offshore wind from the north at 12 mph, and the swell starts to nudge up to 3 ft from the east with a period of 8 seconds. The combined wave energy climbs to 92 – still weak, but at least the conditions are clean.

By Thursday morning, September 24th, we’ve got the best window in the whole forecast. Folly Beach Pier sees the swell height increase to 4 ft from the east, period at 7 seconds, but crucially, the wind is light from the north at 6 mph, giving us clean conditions. The combined energy hits 127 – that’s moderate energy (127) and finally enough to push some rideable waves. This is the standout. It’s not huge, but it’s the most surfable wave in the entire 16-day window. The water temp is still warm here, about average for the time of year. This spot is a beach/pier, so it’s exposed to the swell from the NE, and the optimum swell direction is NE, so this east swell is a little off that ideal, but still workable.

The period is short (7 seconds), so these are windswell-like waves, not a long-period groundswell. They’ll be a bit soft and not super powerful, but for a beginner-level spot, it’s actually a decent little session if you keep your expectations realistic. Crowds are possible here (sometimes crowded), so you might have company.

After that, the end of the month gets a bit messy again with cross-shore winds and lumpy conditions, but the 24th morning is the one to circle.

So overall, Folly Beach Pier has a long quiet spell, then a brief, clean, rideable window around Thursday, September 24th morning. If you’re keen, that’s your shot.

Rusty

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