Surf Forecasts:
Pelican Watch surf forecast from 10 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 13 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 10s period, SE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 13 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 10s period, SE swell with 74 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 13 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 10s period with SE 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 Sunday (Sep 13) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.9m and 5s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Pelican Watch in the next 16 days are 0.6m 10s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 13) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.0m 5s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 13) at 8AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5AM (Sun 13th Sep) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Sun 13th Sep) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Sun 13th Sep) | 2ft (0.6m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Pelican Watch over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Righto, let’s have a look at what’s shaping up for Pelican Watch over the next sixteen days. Straight up, there’s a bit of a flat, quiet patch to start. The first real whisper of anything worth paddling out for isn’t until Sunday, 13th September, so you’re looking at a few days of nothing much.
Alright, so Sunday morning, 13th September, we finally get a breath of life. The swell bumps up to 2 ft out of the SE with a period of 10 seconds, and the wave energy is sitting at a moderate 119 (combined energy). Now, the wind is a light cross-offshore from the SW, so it’ll be fairly clean. It’s surfable, but the weather is a bit average with risk of storms. The conditions are described as “very ordinary,” so don’t expect perfection – it’s just something to wet your line. Monday the 14th backs right off again, and then we’ve got a long, stale stretch of small, messy, onshore slop through to the 20th.
Then we get a little flicker of hope later on. Tuesday, 22nd September afternoon is the standout in the whole period. We see the swell jump to 5 ft from the NE, which is a solid size, with a period of 7 seconds. The combined energy spikes right up to 340, which is a strong pulse of power. The wind turns light offshore from the NNW, so it’s going to be clean. For a beginner spot, 5 ft is getting into the too-big zone, so this is one for the more experienced surfers in the water. That’s the one to circle on the calendar.
Before that, the afternoon of Saturday, 20th September sees a messy 4 ft from the NE, with a fresh cross-onshore wind at 18 mph and lumpy conditions. The energy is up at 181, but with the wind, it’s going to be a chop-fest. Honestly, that looks more like a kite session than a paddle session.
Water temp at Pelican Watch is 82°F with an anomaly of +0.4°F, so pretty much bang on average for this time of year – no surprises there.
So, the bottom line: a whole lot of nothing for the first week and a half, with a very ordinary option on Sunday the 13th, and then one proper, clean, punchy window on the afternoon of Tuesday, 22nd September. That’s your best bet, but it’s a bit of a wait. Given this spot is fairly consistent, the poor run feels a bit unusual; but for now, it’s a waiting game.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 13mm), heaviest on Sat afternoon. Warm (max 30°C on Fri afternoon, min 26°C on Thu morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 37mm), heaviest during Mon night. Warm (max 31°C on Mon afternoon, min 25°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 10 | Friday 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SE 6 | SE 6 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | E 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 27 | 27 | 45 | 42 | 25 | 19 | 35 | 39 | 42 | 74 | 41 | 39 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 37 | 36 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | on |
High Tide | 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 | 11:59AM1.50m | 00:12AM1.10m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 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 | 5:16AM0.20m | 6:21PM0.30m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | |  | | | | |  | | | | | | | | | |  | |
 | 6:50 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — |
 | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:23 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:21 | — | — | 7:20 | — | — | 7:17 | — | — | 7:16 | — |
mm | — | — | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | — | 5 | — | 3 | 26 | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — |
Temp °C | 28 | 29 | 27 | 28 | 30 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 31 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 |
Feels °C | 32 | 30 | 29 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 32 | 31 | 29 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 32 | 34 | 30 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 26 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 6 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | E 8 |
| kJ | 27 | 16 | 45 | 42 | 25 | 19 | 35 | 39 | 42 | 45 | 41 | 39 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 37 | 36 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 8 | E 9 | E 9 | E 8 | SE 8 | — | S 4 | — | — | SE 10 | E 6 | E 6 | S 4 | E 5 | S 4 | E 15 | E 15 | SE 14 | ENE 5 | E 5 | ESE 9 |
| kJ | 18 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 18 | — | 6 | — | — | 74 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 9 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | E 9 | — | — | E 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | E 5 | NE 5 | E 5 | — | E 15 | SE 14 | SE 14 | SE 14 | SSE 6 |
| kJ | 1 | 2 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 4 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 3 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | SE 6 | S 3 | SSW 4 | SSW 4 | S 4 | S 4 | S 5 | SSW 5 | SSW 5 | SSW 5 | S 5 | — | S 4 | — | — | — | ENE 5 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | 27 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 11 | 39 | 20 | 26 | 15 | — | 6 | — | — | — | 4 | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 304 | 641 | 352 | 54 | 629 | 282 | 562 | 1232 | 3 | 0 | 489 | 22 | 54 | 529 | 355 | 1794 | 2032 | 129 | 561 | 1153 | 352 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Carolina | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
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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.
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