Sunset Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here with the lowdown on Sunset Beach. It's a one-break show, a proper big-wave spot that needs everything to line up to be truly on.

We're starting on Thursday, July 23rd. The water's running a bit colder than usual for this time of year at 57°F, just a little quirk of the deep blue right now.

Your first real standout is Friday, July 24th, in the morning. We've got a solid 12ft groundswell pounding in from the southwest, with a super long period of 14 seconds – that's a ton of energy (combined energy of 4362). The wind is glassy out of the east-southeast, which is an absolute dream. This is big, powerful, clean surf, but don't kid yourself, this is an advanced wave for a reason. Anything over 8ft is expert zone, and this is well past that line. The break is inconsistent in nature, and crowds are possible, so expect a competitive lineup if you're brave enough. That southwest direction is exactly what this reef is looking for.

The rest of that weekend, the 25th and 26th, still has meaty swell, around 7ft to 8ft from the same southwest, but the winds get onshore in the afternoons. The mornings are the call, with cleaner cross-off or glassy conditions. It'll be good, quality surf, but missing that Friday morning magic.

We hit a dead zone from the 27th of July through the 29th. The wind goes cross-shore and howls, hitting 28 mph on Monday afternoon. There's still some size and energy, but it'll be a blown-out mess. Not worth paddling out for.

The swell then drops off a cliff from the 30th of July to the 2nd of August. We're looking at weak 4ft to 5ft dribble. The combined energy drops right down to 350-770, so the waves will be gutless. A total waste of time at a spot like this.

But here's the good news far down the line. Check out Monday, August 3rd, in the morning. It's glassy, dead calm wind, with a 5ft swell from the west-southwest and a very long period of 16 seconds (combined energy of 1361). That's a perfect long-period groundswell for this reef, and while it's not huge, the conditions are absolutely flawless. This is an excellent session for the experienced crew.

From the 4th of August through the 7th, the size bumps back up a bit, with mornings mostly having clean cross-off winds. There will be surfable 6ft to 8ft southwest swell, but the winds are a little breezier and not as perfect as that Monday.

So, your top pick is Friday morning, July 24th, for a big, clean, powerful session for experts only. Your second standout, a promising long-range call, is Monday morning, August 3rd, for pristine, glassy, long-period waves.

Rusty.

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