Surf Forecasts:
48th Street surf forecast from 18 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 19 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 10s period, SE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 18 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 11s period, SE swell with 97 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 19 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 10s period with SE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for 48th Street this week:
The surf forecast for 48th Street over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 4s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at 48th Street in the next 16 days are 0.6m 11s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 18) at 8PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.4m 3s period and expected on Thursday (Aug 20) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 8PM (Tue 18th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for 48th Street over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about the stretch ahead for 48th Street.
Straight up, the first week and a half is a tough slog. There’s very little to get excited about. We’re looking at a long dry spell from now until the end of August, with only tiny, weak, and often messy waves. The wind is mostly cross or onshore, and the swell is small and inconsistent. You’ll see a few glassy mornings, like Wednesday the 19th and Thursday the 20th, but the swell is so small – only 1ft to 2ft – that it’s barely worth suiting up. The combined energy is weak, in the 20 to 60 range, so it’s more of a paddle than a surf.
The real story, and the only true standout in this whole 16-day window, arrives at the very end. Mark your calendars for Monday the 31st of August and Tuesday the 1st of September. This is where the forecast finally delivers.
On Monday the 31st, the afternoon session is the one to chase. The swell builds to 6ft from the ENE, with a period of 7 seconds. The wind goes glassy offshore from the WSW, and the combined energy jumps to a solid 373. That’s moderate wave energy and it’s going to be clean. It’s a bit on the bigger side for beginners, but for anyone with some experience, this is the best of the run.
Tuesday the 1st of September holds the biggest swell of the forecast. The morning sees 8ft from the ENE, with a period of 8 seconds. The combined energy is a strong 788. The wind is light and cross, so it won’t be perfect, but there’s a lot of power. This is expert territory at over 8ft, so only the skilled crew should be out. The afternoon cleans up with a cross-offshore wind from the NW, dropping to 7ft, but still with lots of energy (639).
So, the first week is a write-off. We’ve got a solid 10-day gap with no worthwhile surf. But the last couple of days of August and the first day of September deliver a classic late-summer pulse. It’s a long way out, so keep an eye on it, but it’s the best bet on the table.
– Rusty
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 21mm), heaviest during Thu afternoon. Warm (max 29°C on Wed afternoon, min 23°C on Thu afternoon). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 54mm), heaviest during Sat morning. Warm (max 25°C on Sun morning, min 20°C on Sat morning). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the ENE on Sat morning, light winds from the SSE by Sat night). | |||||||||||||||||||
Tue 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | ||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | NE 4 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | E 5 | E 5 | ESE 13 | ESE 12 | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 11 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 21 | 92 | 59 | 29 | 20 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 46 | 32 | 28 | 24 | 19 | 17 | 15 | 32 | 43 | 35 | 34 | 30 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | cross | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | off | off | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:00AM1.04m | 1:34PM1.19m | 1:50AM0.97m | 2:22PM1.16m | 2:43AM0.92m | 3:14PM1.14m | 3:41AM0.90m | 4:11PM1.14m | 4:42AM0.92m | 5:07PM1.17m | 5:39AM0.96m | 6:00PM1.22m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 6:52PM0.21m | 6:57AM0.20m | 7:51PM0.27m | 7:50AM0.27m | 8:55PM0.30m | 8:52AM0.30m | 9:57PM0.29m | 9:53AM0.30m | 10:51PM0.26m | 10:48AM0.27m | 11:39PM0.20m | 11:38AM0.23m | 00:24AM0.15m | |||||||
 |  |  |  |  | | | | |  |  |  |  | |  | |  | | |  | |
 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — |
 | 7:50 | — | — | 7:49 | — | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:43 | — | — | 7:42 | — |
mm | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 3 | 13 | 3 | — | — | 1 | 21 | 8 | 13 | 1 | — | 10 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 25 | 26 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 24 | 26 | 23 |
Feels °C | 26 | 30 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 28 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 22 | 24 | 27 | 25 | 22 | 24 | 26 | 22 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 6 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SSE 5 | SSE 5 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | E 5 | E 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 |
| kJ | 19 | 92 | 59 | 29 | 20 | 18 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 16 | 15 | 24 | 19 | 16 | 11 | 6 | 43 | 20 | 20 | 13 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 9 | NE 4 | NE 4 | NE 4 | — | S 3 | S 3 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | S 5 | SE 14 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 12 | ESE 12 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 11 |
| kJ | 12 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 2 | 1 | 15 | 15 | 2 | 8 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 35 | 34 | 30 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 12 | — | NE 4 | — | — | E 6 | SE 5 | E 6 | E 15 | E 15 | — | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | ESE 12 | E 8 | ENE 5 | E 7 | E 7 | E 7 |
| kJ | 21 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | — | 18 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | SSW 3 | SSW 3 | — | NE 4 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | — | SSW 3 | S 3 | S 4 | SSE 5 | — | NW 3 | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 2 | 2 | — | 16 | 46 | 32 | 28 | — | 1 | 2 | 1 | 32 | — | 2 | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 404 | 8 | 0 | 609 | 222 | 265 | 585 | 196 | 658 | 2663 | 495 | 261 | 261 | 21 | 886 | 261 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Maryland | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our 48th Street surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the 48th Street Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for 48th Street provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at 48th Street can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our 48th Street surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (48th Street) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for 48th Street may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
48th Street is 7 km (4 miles) from Ocean City. If you plan a vacation in Maryland, look for hotels and other accommodation in Ocean City. Ocean City has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest