Masonboro Inlet Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what Masonboro Inlet has in store for us over the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, it’s a tough stretch ahead. We’ve got a long, flat and messy run with very little to get excited about. For the first several days, from Saturday the 29th of August right through until about Wednesday the 2nd of September, it’s just poor surf conditions across the board – tiny waist-high or smaller windswell, mixed up by onshore and cross-shore breezes, and a whole lot of chop. The combined wave energy is weak, sitting between 24 and 37, so don’t bother paddling out unless you just want to float.

The first real glimmer of something rideable shows up on Wednesday morning, September 2nd. We’ve got a tiny bump in swell height to 3 ft, coming out of the southeast with a period of 10 seconds. Combined energy climbs to a moderate 155, and with a light cross-offshore breeze from the WSW, conditions will be clean. It’s still small – barely knee to waist high – and it’s only a short window before the wind swings and messes it up again in the afternoon. Not a standout by any stretch, just the best of a poor bunch.

After that, the pattern stays grim: small windswell, poor wind directions, and scores that don’t break zero through the rest of the first week and into the second. You’ll see a few clean mornings on the 4th and 5th, but with swells a miserable 1 ft to 2 ft and combined energy stuck below 40, it’s just not worth suiting up.

Then, on Sunday, September 6th in the morning, things perk up a little. Swell bumps to 4 ft from the southwest, period 6 seconds, combined energy at 99 (just about moderate), and a clean offshore breeze from the northwest at 9 mph. That’s your best window across the whole forecast. It’s small enough for most competent surfers, but with a short period and beach/jetty setup, don’t expect much shape. It’s a quick morning session before the wind changes.

Beyond that, it’s back to tiny or flat conditions, with a storm system rolling in by Sunday the 13th and dropping energy to zero. The water temperature is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual.

All in all, it’s a quiet, frustrating outlook. The only time I’d point my car toward the inlet is Sunday morning, September 6th, for that waist-high, clean offshore window at Masonboro Inlet. It’s not epic, but it’s the best we’ve got.

Rusty.

Read more