Rehoboth Main Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let me level with you. We’ve got a long stretch ahead, but it’s a tough one for paddle surfing. The finder isn't lighting up with any real recommendations, so I’m gonna walk you through what’s on offer and where the faint glimmers of hope are.

We’re looking at Rehoboth Main (Rehoboth-Main) and the water’s running much warmer than normal for this time of year, sitting at 77°.

For the first week, honestly, it’s a struggle. The swell is small and weak, and the wind is mostly a mess. Thursday the 10th kicks off with a tiny 2ft S swell at 6 seconds, but it's offshore with a moderate breeze, so it’s clean but barely breaking. That afternoon goes glassy, but the swell drops to 1ft. The combined energy is a weak 15, so you’re just floating. Friday the 11th is onshore and wonky. Saturday the 12th gets a little bump to 3ft and 3ft, but it’s cross-onshore and choppy, making it a write-off. Sunday the 13th morning is a standout in a bad lineup – glassy conditions with a 2ft swell, but it’s an ESE direction and the break is exposed to the east, so it’s not really doing anything. The combined energy is only 43. It’s surfable but very ordinary.

The following week, from the 14th to the 20th, is a long, flat gap. We’re seeing tiny waves, mostly under 2ft, and the wind is all over the place – cross-on, cross, onshore. There’s no real push. The energy levels are in the teens and twenties, which is basically nothing. You’d be better off taking a walk on the beach. The only flicker is Monday, September 21st morning. A 3ft NE swell, clean with a light cross-offshore wind from the NW. The energy is a weak 47, but the conditions are clean. It’s a surfable wave but still very ordinary.

Then, late in the window, things get interesting but not for beginners. Tuesday, September 23rd, the swell jumps to 4ft, but it’s hammered by a 25 mph cross-onshore wind. That’s just messy. The real change comes Wednesday the 24th morning. The swell is 5ft from the E at 8 seconds, with a 22 mph cross-offshore wind from the NE. The combined energy is 235, so it’s got some grunt. Thursday the 24th is cleaner, with a cross-offshore WNW wind at 19-22 mph and a 5ft to 5ft E swell. The energy is up to 289. This is the best of a bad bunch – clean, so it’ll look good, but the period is short at 8 seconds, so it’s a bit weak and won't have much push. It’s still a paddle.

The standout, if you can call it that, is Friday, September 25th. The swell hits 8ft to 8ft from the E and ESE, period 7-8 seconds. The combined energy is massive – 532 on the morning, 675 in the afternoon. That’s a lot of water moving. The wind is cross-offshore from the SW, so it’ll be clean. But this is big, solid, and raw. At 8ft, it’s pushing limits for intermediates, and at 8ft, it’s expert-only territory. The short period means it’s going to be a bit of a washing machine, so you’ll want a board with some volume and a lot of paddle power. The break is a beach, so with that much energy, it’s going to be a bumpy, powerful ride. For the experienced crew, it’s the only window that looks truly interesting, but it’s a long way out – over a week – so keep an eye on the charts.

Overall, for the next 16 days, this is a quiet period for surfing. The first week is a bust, the second week is a gap, and the final days offer a clean but short-period, powerful swell that’s really for the experts only. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing on those last few days if you're not ready for the size.

Stay safe, keep your eyes on the horizon.

Rusty

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