Surf City Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, let’s get into it. I’m Rusty, and I’ve been watching this stretch of coast like a hawk.

Alright, to be straight with you, the next couple of weeks are looking pretty average for a paddle. We’ve got a long, slow grind of small, weak swell and winds that just won’t play nice. Most of the time, you’ll be looking at poor surf conditions. There’s a real gap here with nothing worth rushing out for until we get to the second week.

Let’s start with Surf City Pier. The water temp is sitting about average for this time of year, so no shocks there.

Thursday the 10th kicks off with a tiny 2ft SE swell and a short 6-second period. The combined energy is weak (41), and a cross-shore breeze messes it up. Not worth a second look. That theme continues right through the first week. We see a little glimmer on Monday the 14th morning – the wind goes glassy with a light 2ft SE swell, but the period is still short at 9 seconds, and the energy is weak (40). It’ll be clean but gutless. You might get a few knee-high dribblers.

Honestly, the whole first week is a write-off. The swell barely cracks 2ft, and the wind is nearly always onshore or cross-shore, making things choppy and messy. There are a few glassy mornings, but the waves just aren’t there to back it up.

Now, into the second week, things finally start to change, but it’s not all good news. By Saturday the 19th, we see a jump in size. The morning brings a 4ft ENE swell, but it’s short-period (6 seconds) with weak energy (125). The wind is clean off-shore, so the surface will look good, but the waves will be weak and crumbly. It’s still rated as poor surf.

The real kicker comes in the middle of that week. On Tuesday the 22nd, the swell starts to build. We see a 4ft E swell in the morning with a moderate combined energy of 266, rising to a 5ft ENE swell by the afternoon with strong energy (384). The period is still short (7-8 seconds), though, and a moderate cross-shore wind will put a chop on it. Wednesday the 23rd sees even more size, with a 6ft E swell and strong energy (323), but the wind swings onshore and gets fresh, making it lumpy and ugly. This is starting to get into the too-big-for-beginners range and the conditions are poor.

Thursday the 24th morning is the standout for size, with a 6ft ENE swell and very strong energy (885), but again, a fresh onshore wind and risk of thunderstorms ruin the party. The period is only 8 seconds, so it’ll be a messy, bumpy wall of water. For a beach break setup, this is looking more like a kite-surfing day than a good paddle-surfing day.

So, what’s the pick? If you’re desperate, the cleanest windows are the glassy mornings of Monday the 14th, Wednesday the 16th, and Thursday the 17th, but you’ll be fighting for scraps on 1ft to 2ft swell. For a bit more size, the best of a bad bunch is probably Saturday the 19th morning with that 4ft ENE swell and clean off-shore wind, but don’t expect any power. The bigger swells later in the week are too wind-affected to be any good.

It’s a flat and frustrating run for now. Keep an eye on it, but don’t hold your breath.

Rusty.

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