Fort Fisher Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you about what’s coming up for Fort Fisher over the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, it’s a pretty grim run. We’re looking at a solid stretch of, well, not much. For days on end the conditions are just poor. It’s not until the middle of the second week that we might see something that gets the heart rate up, but even that comes with some serious wind baggage.

We kick off on Friday the 11th with some tiny 2 ft SE swell, but the wind is all wrong, and it’s messy. Saturday and Sunday the 12th and 13th are pretty much the same story – knee-high dribble with cross-off winds that might look clean on paper but the energy is just gone. The combined energy is sitting in the 30-40 range, which is weak. Forget it.

Monday the 14th has a moment that’s almost cruel. We get a glassy morning with the wind swinging to a light WNW at just 3 mph. But the swell is a paltry 1 ft from the ESE with a period of 9 seconds. It’s clean, but it’s flat. The water temp is sitting at a normal 81°, so it’s not a wetsuit issue, it’s a ‘no waves’ issue.

Tuesday the 15th brings a jump in size – 4 ft from the ENE on the morning – but the period is a short, weak 6 seconds and the wind is a nasty NE cross-onshore at 16 mph. The energy climbs into the moderate bracket at 143, but it’s messy, choppy, and useless for a proper session.

Wednesday the 16th and Thursday the 17th are more of the same: onshore winds, short period swell, poor surf conditions. The energy stays moderate (low 100s) but the quality is just not there.

We get a bit of a drop on the 18th, down to 2 ft, with light cross-onshore winds. Still not worth paddling out for.

Then there’s a real dead patch. Saturday the 19th and Sunday the 20th see swell drop to 0.7 ft to 1 ft, with onshore winds and even a risk of t-storms. A long period 12-second groundswell appears on the 19th, but it’s only 0.7 ft – a phantom.

Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Monday the 21st of September is the first real standout, but with a major caveat. The swell jumps to 5 ft in the morning and 6 ft in the afternoon, from the ENE with a short 6-second period. The energy jumps to a strong 238. But the wind is onshore or cross-onshore, and the combined energy is high (184-238). For paddle surfing, the conditions are still poor. Honestly, with that much wind and that kind of short-period, chunky swell, this setup at Fort Fisher (beach and reef) looks more interesting for kite surfing than a traditional paddle session.

Tuesday the 22nd is probably the best bet, but it’s not for everyone. We get 5 ft to 5 ft of east swell with a 7-second period, and the wind swings to a cross-off from the NNW at 16 mph. The water should be clean. The energy is solid at 225-239. This is solidly in the intermediate-to-expert range; at over 5 ft it’s getting too big for beginners. It’s not a perfect barrel, but it’s the best quality on offer. Just keep in mind, it can get crowded at Fort Fisher, so you won’t be alone.

The rest of the week into the 26th is a mixed bag of similar-sized east swell (4 ft to 5 ft) but with persistent cross-onshore or cross-off winds that keep the quality from being truly epic. There might be a few fun ones, but there’s no real standout after the 22nd.

So, the bottom line: a long dry spell, one solid but windy pulse on the 21st that favors kites, and then a cleaner, punchy session on Tuesday the 22nd for the more experienced crew. Keep an eye out, because forecasts can change.

Rusty.

Read more