Hunting Island Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – this isn’t a classic South Carolina stretch. We’ve got a long, quiet run ahead with barely a whisper of proper waves. The only spot in the game is Hunting Island, and honestly, it’s a tough one to get excited about for the next 16 days.

Right from the start, the outlook is grim. The first recommendation doesn’t even pop up until Saturday morning, August 8th, and even then, it’s a struggle. We’re looking at a 4ft swell from the southeast, but the period is a short, weak 8 seconds. The combined energy is a modest 196, so it’s not powerless, but the conditions are just ordinary. The wind is a light cross-offshore from the SSW, which does keep the surf clean, but the waves are just too small and weak to get your heart racing. The water temperature is a balmy 86° with a big anomaly of 4°, so it’s much warmer than usual for this time of year, which is a nice touch for a paddle but not for the wave count.

The rest of the first week and into the second is a long, flat grind. From Sunday, August 9th, right through to Friday, August 14th, we’ve got days of tiny, 1ft to 1ft slop. The wind often blows clean and offshore, but there’s just no swell to work with. It’s a dead period. Even the glassy conditions on Sunday morning, August 9th, with a 2ft swell, didn’t produce anything worth paddling for.

We finally see a little pulse on Saturday morning, August 15th. It’s glassy, with a 3ft swell from the south, but the period is a horrible 5 seconds. The energy is only 71 – it’s barely a ripple. Then Sunday morning, August 16th, gives us a 3ft south swell with a 5-second period again, but this time there’s a light offshore wind from the WSW, making it clean. Still, with that period, the waves will be weak and fat.

The one flicker of hope, if you can call it that, shows up on Thursday morning, August 20th. We’ve got a 2ft swell from the southeast, but the period jumps to 10 seconds. That’s a longer-period groundswell, and the energy spikes to 185. The wind is a moderate cross-offshore from the SW, keeping things clean. This is the best of a bad bunch. It’s still small, but that longer period will give the waves a little more shape and push than the rest of the muck we’ve seen. For a beginner, that 2ft is fine, but it’s not going to thrill anyone.

For the standouts, take your pick from the scraps. Saturday morning, August 15th, with the glassy conditions and 3ft swell, is the cleanest window, but the waves are gutless. The Thursday morning, August 20th, window has the best swell quality with the 10-second period, but it’s tiny. That’s the best we’ve got. If you’re a beginner just wanting to get wet, that Saturday morning might be your best bet. For anyone else, this is a long wait for not much reward.

The crowds at Hunting Island are listed as “sometimes” busy, but with this forecast, I wouldn’t expect many takers. You’ll have the place mostly to yourself.

Like I said, it’s a quiet run. Forecasts can change, but for now, keep your board in the car and your expectations low.

Rusty.

Read more