72nd Place Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s get an honest look at what’s coming up for 72nd Place. This is a sheltered, advanced-level break that’s inconsistent, and I gotta say, it’s a pretty bleak run for the next couple of weeks. The water is sitting at about 69°F – that’s about 2°F warmer than usual, so it’s a little balmy for this time of year, but nothing wild.

We are looking at a grind of poor surf starting this Friday afternoon the 21st and running all the way through to Wednesday morning the 26th of August. That’s nearly a full five days of nothing worth paddling out for. We’ve got tiny swell, mostly 1ft to 2ft from the SSW, with onshore or cross-onshore winds the whole time. The energy is weak, reading between 130 and 333 on the combined energy scale – just not enough push to do anything.

On the morning of Wednesday the 26th, we see a bump up to 5ft from the S with the combined energy jumping into the moderate range at 1033, but the wind is still cross-onshore and the surf quality is called marginal. This continues into Thursday the 27th where it drops back down to 4ft and loses a lot of energy. It is still not clean.

Things start to look slightly more hopeful around the 28th of August with a long-period groundswell (19 seconds) from the SSW, but with only 2ft of height and light cross-onshore wind, it’s still marginal. That long period (over 15 seconds) at a beach setup like 72nd Place might see the waves breaking too straight, so it's a tricky one to get excited about.

The morning of Saturday the 29th offers 3ft from the SSW with a 17-second period and offshore wind. The energy is up to a solid moderate level (698) but the guide says the surf is still only marginal. That's likely the best-in-window, but honestly, it's not a standout.

Then, after the 29th, it fades again into another 5-day gap of poor or marginal surf, with tiny swell. The pickings are really slim.

The only time we see something that gets me talking is the final weekend of the forecast. On the morning of Friday the 4th of September, we get 5ft from the SSE with a 15-second period and the combined energy surges up to a very strong 1366. The wind is still cross-onshore, but it’s light, so it's called marginal. By Saturday the 5th, it’s 6ft from the S – that's getting solid, good for advanced guys only, and dangerously big for beginners – with strong-very strong energy at 1789. But again, that wind is a cross-onshore, and the surf is only rated as marginal. This is a week and a half away, so keep an eye on it, but it's far from a guaranteed gem.

Bottom line: 72nd Place is a tough ticket this forecast. We have a massive gap of poor conditions, and the only "best" options on offer are the marginal windows around the 29th of August and the 4-5th of September. It’s not a complete write-off, but it’s not a time to lock in your plans.

Rusty.

Read more