The Inlet and Pier Surf Break

Lat Long: 38.33° N 75.08° W

The Inlet and Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 7 pm 17 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's The Inlet and Pier sea temperature is
26.1° C
1.9° 

The Inlet and Pier surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


The Inlet and Pier surf forecast from 18 Aug 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Tuesday 18 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 11s period, SE swell with glassy winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Sunday 23 Aug, 11AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 6s period, S swell with 60 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 18 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 11s period with SE swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Inlet and Pier this week:

The surf forecast for The Inlet and Pier over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 18) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 11s period. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at The Inlet and Pier in the next 16 days are 1.0m 6s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 23) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 6s period and expected on Sunday (Aug 23) at 11PM.

Wave TypeTime (EDT) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+)11PM (Tue 18th Aug)1.5ft (0.5m) 11s
Best Surf11PM (Tue 18th Aug)1.5ft (0.5m) 11s
Most Powerful11AM (Sun 23rd Aug)3.5ft (1.0m) 6s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Inlet and Pier over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

G’day, it’s Rusty here. I’ve been eyeballing the charts for The Inlet and Pier, and I gotta be straight with you: it’s a barren wasteland for the next couple of weeks. We’ve got a proper flat spell that will test your patience, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel if you’re willing to wait it out.

Water temp is pretty much normal for this time of year, so you won’t need anything special for a paddle. But the surf is the problem. Right now, through the rest of August, there is nothing but tiny, weak dribble. For days on end, the swell is under a foot-and-a-half, meaning under 0.5m, and it’s just not breaking with any power. The energy levels are in the tank—we’re talking low teen and twenties for most of this week. Winds are light, which is good for the surface, but it’s like a lake out there. We’ll see some storms, but they don’t help. Saturday the 22nd brings a small bump to 0.8m, but it’s a short, weak 5-second wind swell. It’s not worth the effort. Sunday the 23rd is slightly better, with 1.0m out of the southwest and offshore winds making it look clean, but it’s still weak and gutless. It might be waist-high and soft. You could get a few ankle-biters, but it’s not a day to get excited about.

Then it goes flat again. Monday the 24th and Tuesday the 25th are back to zero. We’re talking a full week-plus of nothing. Midweek, from the 26th, we see some long-period energy start to show, but it’s still tiny—only 0.4m. The period jumps to 15-16 seconds, which is a lot of energy but in a wave that’s too small to ride. The wind stays cross and a bit breezy, so it won’t even be clean. This just keeps tormenting us for a few more days. By the 29th and 30th, it's still small, with breezes that are cross-offshore, a little better, but still nothing rideable.

Then on Monday the 31st, things finally change. We’ve got a proper pulse: 1.7m out of the east with a 6-second period, and the energy is at 225. That’s the first real swell of the entire window. The wind is light and cross-offshore in the morning, making it clean. This is the only standout we have—you need to be out there early because the afternoon wind builds to 20 km/h from the south and puts a chop on it. At 1.7m, that’s around chest high. It’s a short period, east swell, which isn’t the perfect direction for this spot—it likes NE—but it’s the only real surf we’ll see. The morning session on the 31st is the one to circle. After that, it drops back down to 0.8m on Tuesday the 1st, which is just ordinary. Then it looks like it fades again.

So, bottom line: after all that waiting, the only real window is the morning of Monday the 31st. It won’t be perfect, but it’s the best we’re going to get for a long time. Rusty, signing off.

Short Range Forecast

Light rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Tue afternoon. Warm (max 28°C on Wed afternoon, min 24°C on Tue morning). Wind will be generally light.

Days 5-7 Weather Summary

Heavy rain (total 38mm), heaviest during Fri night. Warm (max 28°C on Sun afternoon, min 22°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light.

Tuesday
18
Wednesday
19
Thursday
20
Friday
21
Saturday
22
Sunday
23
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.3
SE
9
0.5
SE
7
0.2
ESE
12
0.5
SE
11
0.4
SE
10
0.4
SE
9
0.4
SE
9
0.3
ESE
8
0.3
ESE
8
0.3
ESE
8
0.2
ESE
9
0.3
ESE
9
0.8
E
4
0.8
E
5
0.7
E
5
0.5
E
6
1
S
6
0.9
SSE
6
0.2
ESE
12
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
12
27
14
56
34
30
20
14
14
14
8
16
26
31
27
17
60
54
14
Wind (km/h)
10
WNW
10
N
10
E
5
SSW
10
NW
10
SSE
15
S
10
SE
10
SE
10
NW
5
ENE
5
ESE
10
S
10
SSE
10
S
15
SSW
15
SW
15
SSW
10
SSW
Wind State
cross-off
cross
on
glassy
cross-off
cross
cross
cross-on
cross-on
cross-off
glassy
on
cross
cross-on
cross
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
High Tide
11:53PM1.00m
12:24PM1.13m
00:39AM0.90m
1:15PM1.09m
1:30AM0.82m
2:12PM1.06m
2:26AM0.77m
3:14PM1.06m
3:28AM0.77m
4:14PM1.08m
4:27AM0.79m
5:09PM1.12m
Low Tide
6:08AM0.10m
6:54PM0.20m
6:53AM0.16m
7:51PM0.27m
7:41AM0.21m
8:51PM0.32m
8:33AM0.24m
9:53PM0.34m
9:28AM0.25m
10:53PM0.34m
10:25AM0.23m
11:45PM0.31m
thunderstorm
thunderstorm
thunderstorm
clear
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
thunderstorm
rain showers
thunderstorm
rain showers
thunderstorm
thunderstorm
mod rain
thunderstorm
thunderstorm
thunderstorm
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
6:16
6:16
6:18
6:18
6:20
6:20
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
7:52
7:50
7:49
7:47
7:45
7:45
7:43
 mm
2
1
5
6
4
2
8
2
2
8
5
1
3
Temp °C
27
26
26
26
27
28
28
27
27
25
23
24
24
24
25
26
24
28
27
Feels °C
30
28
29
29
28
30
30
29
29
28
26
27
26
27
27
28
25
29
25
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for The Inlet and Pier:

join our community of surf reporters

FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website

The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our The Inlet and Pier surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.


Information about the The Inlet and Pier Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for The Inlet and Pier provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Inlet and Pier can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Inlet and Pier surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Inlet and Pier) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).

Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Inlet and Pier may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.

The Inlet and Pier is 3 km (2 miles) from Ocean City. If you plan a vacation in Maryland, look for hotels and other accommodation in Ocean City. Ocean City has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

Nearest locationNearest