Isle of Palms Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's be straight with you. Looking at the charts for Isle of Palms Pier, it’s a bit of a slow grind for the next couple of weeks. There are no real standouts, and we'll be chasing tiny, inconsistent waves for most of the period.

The water is sitting at 83°F on Thursday morning, which is about a degree and a half warmer than the long-term average for this time of year. It's a touch warm, but nothing too crazy.

The first chunk of the forecast is pretty bleak. From Thursday the 10th to the 18th, we're looking at almost nothing but knee-high slop. Swell heights are hovering around 0.7ft to 2ft, with weak energy readings mostly in the 20-40 range. The winds are mostly cross or cross-on, which is going to make even these tiny waves a bit of a battle. There's a chance of the odd glassy moment, like Monday morning the 14th when the wind drops out completely, but with a 1ft swell and a 9-second period, it's still not going to be worth paddling out for. You'd be fighting for a wave that closes out.

We finally see a little bump around the 19th and 20th, but it's not pretty. The swell pushes up to 2ft to 3ft out of the ENE/E, but it's all short-period windswell at 6 seconds. The energy is moderate at best, hitting 61 on the Saturday afternoon, but the wind is howling from the northeast at 19 mph. It's going to be lumpy, messy, and crossed-up. Honestly, with that kind of wind and that poor surface quality, the setup at the pier looks way more interesting for kiting than it does for surfing.

Now, here’s the one thing that might get you a little excited. On Monday the 21st of September, the swell direction shifts a bit more easterly and we see the strongest energy reading of the whole run. The afternoon shows 3ft at 6 seconds, with a combined energy of 116, which is a solid, moderate push. The winds are offshore, from the NNE at 16 mph, so it should be clean. The period is short at 6 seconds, so it'll be a bit crumbly, but it's the best we've got. Isle of Palms Pier is an exposed spot, and the swell direction is from the ENE, which is close to its optimum SE direction. It won't be epic, but it'll be surfable and clean. That's your best bet.

After that, it fades back down. The rest of the week looks small and weak again, with more of the same cross-offshore winds and tiny, 0.7ft to 1ft waves. A few clean mornings, like the 24th and 25th, but with nothing behind them.

So, the long and short of it is this: it's a lean couple weeks. If you absolutely need a wave, the only window I'd point you to is Monday afternoon, the 21st. It's the most promise we see, but it's still nothing to write home about. The inconsistency is a bit of a downer, but that's how it goes around here sometimes. Forecasts can change, so keep an eye on it. But for now, keep the board in the car and maybe find something else to do.

Rusty out.

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