Spring Lake Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, let’s get into it. This is Rusty, and I’m looking at the next couple of weeks for Spring Lake. Gotta be straight with you, it’s a pretty quiet stretch. The swell window is working, but the energy is just too low to get anything worthwhile. There’s a big gap of nothing early on, so don’t get your hopes up for a quick fix.

The water’s sitting at about 75°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so that’s a nice little bonus if you’re just getting wet.

The first real chance to even paddle out is Monday morning, August 24th. We’ve got a tiny little 1ft SE swell, with a 12-second period, which is a nice long interval but the size is just a tease. The combined energy is weak (60). The wind is light and cross-off from the SW, so it’s clean, but it’s just ankle-snappers. Honestly, it’s surfable, but it’s very ordinary. You’d be sitting there waiting for a long time.

Tuesday through the rest of the week stays small. The swell stays around 1ft to 2ft, and the wind keeps shifting around. The best wind window is early Wednesday morning, August 26th, when it goes glassy with a light WNW breeze, but the swell is still a pathetic 1ft at 9 seconds. The energy is super low (26). It’s a total flat spell.

We don’t get any real bump until Sunday afternoon, August 30th, when a short-period S swell hits 5ft, but it’s a messy 5-second period and the wind is cross-onshore. The energy is moderate (128), but the conditions are poor. That’s a windswell mess, and it’s not worth the drive.

Now, Monday morning, August 31st, is probably the best of the lot. We get a 4ft SSW swell, 6-second period, with a light offshore NW wind. The energy is moderate (108) and it’s clean. It’s small, but it’s the most rideable wave of the whole run. Still, it’s not a standout.

Into the first week of September, the swell period lengthens out nicely, with 15-16 second intervals from the SE, but the height is stuck at 2ft to 2ft. The energy picks up a bit (143-184), but the wind is cross-on or onshore. It’s all show and no go.

The second week of the forecast, from September 3rd onwards, the wind really cranks up out of the ENE and NE. Swell heights climb to 3ft - 5ft, and the energy gets strong (291-530). But the wind is strong cross-onshore, making it lumpy and messy. This is a kite surfer’s dream, not a paddle surfer’s. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

By Sunday, September 6th, the swell is 5ft from the E, but it’s a short-period 8 seconds and the wind is a fresh cross-shore. It’s just a chunky, blown-out mess.

The only possible highlight is Monday, September 7th afternoon. The ESE swell is 3ft at 10 seconds, with a light SE cross-on breeze. The combined energy is moderate (250), and it’s listed as marginal. Not great, but it’s the cleanest we’ll see in that second week.

So, the bottom line: Spring Lake is going through a very quiet spell. If you’re desperate, Monday morning, August 31st, is the pick of a very thin crop. After that, it’s a long wait for blown-out, windy conditions. Better to wait for a better forecast.

Rusty.

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