30th Street/Ship Bottom Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let me tell you how it's looking for 30th Street/Ship Bottom. I've been eyeing the charts and, honestly, it's a tough stretch of days ahead.

Right off the bat, we're looking at a quiet opening. The first couple of days are a hard pass – tiny, weak swell with barely any energy behind it. You're looking at waves around 1ft on the 25th, with the combined energy sitting at a very weak 23. The water is *much warmer* than usual for this time of year, sitting at 77°. That's a noticeable difference from the norm.

The pattern doesn't really improve much for a while. There's a long, uneventful gap with no real standouts. The swell stays small, mostly under 2ft, and the wind is all over the place. We get a bit of a bump on the 27th afternoon with some 2ft waves from the ESE and a cross-shore wind, but the energy is still low at 113, and the conditions are described as poor.

We finally see a slightly more interesting pulse around Thursday the 3rd of September. The swell picks up a touch, pushing to 3ft from the ESE, and the combined energy jumps into the moderate range at 234 and 209. But, the catch is that it's an onshore wind, which will trash the surface. It's a classic case of "looks okay on paper, but messy in the water." For beginners, this is still manageable under 5ft, but the onshore won't be pretty.

The best of a lackluster bunch might be a brief window on the 4th of September. The morning shows 4ft from the ESE with a 5-second period. Now, that period is super short, so the waves won't have much punch, but the wind is a clean cross-off from the SSW. The energy is a moderate 71. Friday afternoon also holds a cross-off wind with 3ft waves, but the wind picks up a bit. It's not a classic day, but if you're desperate, that's your window for a cleanish surface on a small wave.

For the second week, the pattern is much of the same. We see some clean winds on a few mornings, like a light offshore on the 7th and 8th of September, but the swell is tiny, only 1ft to 2ft. The energy is weak. There is a promising looking offshore wind on September 9th morning, but again, with only 2ft on offer. It’s not worth getting excited about. This is a quiet period, and it looks like the drought will drag on.

Honestly, the highlight here is hard to pick because none of it is great. If I had to choose, I'd say the Thursday the 3rd of September morning has the most size but the worst wind, and Friday the 4th of September has the best wind with a little bit of size. It’s a pick-your-poison kind of forecast.

Stay patient, folks. It’s a dry spell for 30th Street.

Rusty.

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