Surf Forecasts:
Pelican Watch surf forecast from 9 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 11 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 8s period, ESE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 9 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 6s period, ESE swell with 64 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 11 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 8s period with ESE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Pelican Watch this week:
The surf forecast for Pelican Watch over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 11) at 8AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 4s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Pelican Watch in the next 16 days are 0.9m 6s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 09) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 4s period and expected on Friday (Sep 11) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8AM (Fri 11th Sep) | 2ft (0.6m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Fri 11th Sep) | 2ft (0.6m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Wed 9th Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 6s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Pelican Watch over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let’s talk about Pelican Watch. It’s a beginner-friendly spot, pretty exposed to the open ocean, and the water temp is sitting at 82°, which is about normal for this time of year. Not a surprise, just your typical warm water.
Honestly, the next week and a half is looking flat-out bleak. We're talking knee-high dribble and crumbly texture. For the first several days, through the 12th, it's just tiny, weak surf with poor conditions – the kind of thing that has you questioning why you bothered to wax up. The energy is weak too, with readings like 65 and 50 on the combined energy scale. There’s a small bump on the morning of the 13th with 2ft and a 10-second period, but it’s still pretty average and only rated as "surfable" – not worth getting excited about. The winds are mostly cross-off or light, which would be nice if there was anything to ride.
Then we hit a real dead zone. From the 14th through the 23rd, the swell just fades away, dropping to 1ft and even 0.7ft on the 17th, with energy readings down in the teens and twenties. There are a couple of glassy mornings in there, but it’s basically a lake. This is a proper dry spell, a solid ten-day stretch where you might as well take up fishing.
The only flicker of life comes on the 24th, which is a Thursday. We finally see a little bump of 3ft at 5 seconds, and the energy jumps to 52, which is still low. It’s a short-period, wind-swell puff, and it’s coming from the SSE, which is a bit off-angle for this spot. It’ll be glassy in the morning, so if you’re desperate, that’s your window, but it’s not a day to call in sick for.
For now, my advice is to find another hobby for the next week and a half. This is a blank run, and it’s not unusual for this area to go quiet for a stretch. But it won’t stay poor forever – forecasts can shift, and it only takes one good pulse to bring it to life. Keep your board ready, but don’t hold your breath on this one.
Rusty out.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Thu night. Warm (max 30°C on Fri afternoon, min 25°C on Wed morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 7mm), mostly falling on Sat morning. Warm (max 30°C on Sun afternoon, min 26°C on Sat morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | Friday 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | |||||||||||||||
AM | 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) | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | SE 6 | SE 6 | ESE 6 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 64 | 49 | 34 | 35 | 25 | 16 | 37 | 24 | 12 | 35 | 39 | 44 | 58 | 52 | 39 | 37 | 38 | 30 | 28 | 27 | 24 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | on | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 7:10PM1.71m | 7:30AM1.51m | 7:57PM1.68m | 8:18AM1.59m | 8:41PM1.62m | 9:03AM1.64m | 9:23PM1.53m | 9:47AM1.65m | 10:04PM1.43m | 10:30AM1.62m | 10:45PM1.31m | 11:13AM1.56m | 11:27PM1.20m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 12:36PM-0.04m | 1:20AM0.02m | 1:30PM-0.05m | 2:03AM-0.01m | 2:21PM-0.05m | 2:43AM-0.01m | 3:09PM-0.01m | 3:21AM0.01m | 3:55PM0.05m | 3:59AM0.06m | 4:42PM0.13m | 4:37AM0.12m | 5:30PM0.22m | ||||||||
 | |  | | |  |  |  | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:50 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — |
 | — | 7:27 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:23 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:21 | — | — | 7:20 | — | — | 7:17 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 2 | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | 4 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 2 |
Temp °C | 26 | 26 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 28 | 30 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 28 | 30 | 30 | 28 |
Feels °C | 26 | 26 | 27 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 31 | 30 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 31 | 30 | 30 | 33 | 32 | 31 | 34 | 31 | 31 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | ESE 6 | SE 6 | SE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 8 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 |
| kJ | 1 | 49 | 34 | 35 | 25 | 13 | 37 | 24 | 12 | 35 | 39 | 44 | 58 | 52 | 39 | 37 | 38 | 30 | 28 | 27 | 24 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | E 8 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | E 9 | SE 8 | SSW 4 | E 8 | ESE 9 | S 4 | — | E 6 | E 6 | — | — | SSW 4 | E 5 | — | E 15 | E 15 | SE 14 |
| kJ | — | 1 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | 6 | 1 | — | 4 | 4 | 8 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | E 8 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 8 | — | — | — | — | — | E 6 | — | E 6 | E 6 | — | E 6 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 6 | — | — | — | S 4 | S 4 | SW 4 | SSW 4 | SSW 4 | — | S 4 | S 3 | — | SSW 3 | S 4 | — | SSW 4 | SSW 4 | S 4 | SSW 3 | SSW 3 |
| kJ | 64 | — | — | — | 10 | 22 | 10 | 8 | 4 | — | 2 | 2 | — | 1 | 8 | — | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1803 | 140 | 1735 | 529 | 548 | 489 | 22 | 821 | 243 | 629 | 1232 | 142 | 0 | 1153 | 54 | 54 | 278 | 253 | 278 | 1155 | 529 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Carolina | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Pelican Watch 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 Pelican Watch Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Pelican Watch provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Pelican Watch can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Pelican Watch 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 (Pelican Watch) 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 Pelican Watch 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.
Pelican Watch is 26 km (16 miles) from the city of Wilmington. If you plan a vacation in North Carolina, look for hotels and other accommodation in Wilmington. Wilmington has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest