Spring Lake Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here, looking at the local surf scene for Spring Lake over the next couple of weeks. Gotta be straight with you – it’s a tough stretch. We’re looking at a long, dry run with barely a ripple worth paddling for. The first sign of anything remotely rideable doesn’t show up until the 14th of July, and even that is a real borderline call. That’s a solid week of flat or messy junk to sit through.

We start off with a run of poor conditions. Monday afternoon the 6th kicks things off with a risk of thunderstorms and a chunky 16 mph cross-on easterly breeze making a complete mess of the 4 ft swell. The water’s a touch warmer than normal at 73°, but you won’t care because the surf is junk. This theme of onshore or cross-shore wind and weak, short-period swell just keeps going. The combined wave energy is mostly in the feeble range, barely cracking triple digits.

Days roll by with nothing doing. The wind finally swings offshore on the morning of Friday the 10th, but by then the swell has completely died. You’ll get clean, glassy-looking water but with waves only 1.0 ft to 1 ft, it’s a lake, not a surf. Not worth wetting a wetsuit for. The weekend after that is just as flat, with barely 0.7 ft on offer, and even a fresh 19 mph cross-onshore on the 12th can’t create anything surfable.

Alright, let’s jump to the one faint glimmer. The first real bit of energy shows up on Tuesday morning the 14th of July. We’ve got a 5 ft swell from the ESE, which is the right direction for Spring Lake. The combined energy climbs to 323. That’s moderate, solid enough to get your attention. The issue? The period is a short 8 seconds – not the grunty groundswell we’d love. The wind is light from the SSW, just a slight breeze, so the surface will be manageable with a little cross-shore texture. It’s still rated as “marginal” with a score of 1, so don’t expect perfection. This is the standout of the whole run, and it’s average at best.

Tuesday afternoon the onshore kicks back in and chops it up. By Wednesday the 15th we get a clean offshore window from the west in the afternoon, but the swell has dropped to 3 ft. Surfable, but ordinary. The rest of the week just fades away into tiny, clean offshore dribble.

The following weekend, Sunday morning the 19th, offers the only other potential highlight. There’s a brief moment of glassy conditions with a light NNW breeze and a small 2 ft SSE swell. The period is a short 8 seconds, but the combined energy is 76 – weak. It’s clean, but tiny. You’d need a log and some patience.

So, to wrap it up: there are no real rippers in this forecast. The best on offer is Tuesday morning the 14th of July for a few sloppy but rideable waves before the wind turns ugly. The Sunday morning the 19th is a distant second if you’re desperate for a clean but tiny session. For the most part, you’re looking at a blank run of flat or messy conditions. It doesn’t tend to stay this poor for long here, so forecasts can change, but right now, it’s a waiting game.

Rusty.

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