Fort Fisher Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a hard look at what’s on the table for the next couple of weeks.

To be straight with you, this is a tough stretch. The entire 16-day window is a real struggle. We’ve got a long gap of nothing worthwhile starting now and stretching all the way through to the end of the forecast. The first record doesn’t show up until August 4th, and even then, it’s grim. From Tuesday afternoon the 4th right through to Wednesday the 19th, every single report is flagged as “poor surf conditions.” That’s a solid 16 days of flat to near-flat dribble, with barely a pulse.

The only spot on the radar is Fort Fisher (beach and reef). It’s inconsistent, and it’s fairly exposed to swell, with the optimum direction coming from the NE. But the numbers tell the real story. Through the whole period, the swell height barely touches 3 ft, and that’s on the 4th with a weak, short-period SSE swell at 6 seconds and a combined energy of just 169 – that’s weak energy. Water temperature is sitting at 83°F with a tiny anomaly of 0.5°F, so pretty much normal for the time of year. The wind on that Tuesday afternoon is a cross-shore from the south at 9 mph, which is a gentle breeze, but it’s producing a slight cross-chop. The wave comment says it all: “poor surf conditions.”

Don’t hold your breath for the rest of the run. We see a few sniffles of surfable but very ordinary conditions on Wednesday morning the 5th (3 ft, SE, 6 seconds, energy 57) and Friday morning the 7th (3 ft, SE, 7 seconds, energy 64), but the wind is cross-off and the quality is still low. The best of the whole lot is Saturday morning the 8th, with a 3 ft SE swell at 8 seconds and a combined energy of 108 – that’s moderate energy, but still flagged as poor surf. The wind is a cross-off SW at 12 mph.

After that, the swell fades fast. From the 9th onward, we’re looking at 2 ft or less, with energies dropping into the teens and single digits. The wind picks up on the 11th with a fresh breeze from the SSW at 19 mph, but it’s cross-off, so the surface stays clean. The only decent wind direction shows up on the 12th and 13th with a light offshore from the WSW at 9-12 mph, but there’s almost no swell to work with.

By the 15th, the swell is a pathetic 1.0 ft, and the wind is light and variable. The final days from the 17th to the 19th see a slight uptick in swell to 2-3 ft from the SE, but the wind swings onshore and cross-onshore, turning it into lumpy, choppy junk. The energy gets up to 88 on the 18th, but with fresh onshore wind at 19 mph, this is more of a kitesurfing setup than anything for a paddle board.

Honestly, there’s no standout here. Not one day is worth paddling out for. The best you could hope for is a session on the 5th morning or the 8th morning, but even then, it’s ordinary. The long gap is pretty much the whole 16 days. If you’re determined, keep an eye on the 8th, but don’t get your hopes up. The pattern is flat, and it’s staying that way.

Rusty.

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