36th Street Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s cut through the chatter and talk about what’s actually gonna happen.

Honestly, we’re looking at a long, drawn-out flat spell. The next couple of weeks are mostly tiny, weak swell. You’ll be doing more floating than surfing.

First up, we’re at 36th Street. The water is a warm 78°F, which is way above normal for the season, so keep the board shorts on.

The first few days are a total loss. This Tuesday afternoon, September 8th, we’ve got a 0.7ft easterly windswell with a 9-second period, but the combined energy is a weak 9. It’s clean, but there’s zero power. That flatness continues through Wednesday and Thursday. By Thursday afternoon, the 10th, we get a light offshore wind from the WNW, but it’s still only 1ft of east swell. Clean, but tiny.

Friday the 11th is the same – 1ft of east swell, with a light offshore breeze from the NW in the afternoon. Clean, but it’s ankle-biters. Saturday morning the 12th is the best we get in the first week: glassy conditions with a 1ft east swell. It’s flat, but if you’re desperate for a longboard glide, that’s your window. It’s poor surf, but it’s the only calm moment.

Then we hit a big dead zone. From Sunday the 13th through the middle of the week, it’s onshore winds and chopped-up, 1ft to 2ft swell. The combined energy stays in the weak teens and twenties. A proper flat spell.

The second week finally shows a pulse, but it’s a long way off. Sunday the 20th of September has an east swell building to 5ft by the afternoon, with combined energy at 157 (moderate). The problem is a cross-onshore east wind, making it choppy. Not pretty.

Then we get to Monday the 21st of September. This is the real standout. A 5ft east swell with a 7-second period, and the combined energy jumps to 246 (strong). The wind is a moderate cross-shore from the NE in the morning, and cross-onshore in the afternoon. For a beach/jetty break, 5ft is pushing the fun limit, and it’ll be a bit lumpy. Still, after all that flatness, it’s the only day with real power. It’s a solid intermediate session, but the crowds will be *sometimes* there, so expect company.

After that, it fades back to tiny 2ft to 1ft junk for the rest of the period.

So, bottom line: the only real standout is that Monday the 21st of September. The rest is a long, quiet stretch. If you’re a kite surfer, the stronger afternoon winds on the 20th and 21st might look better than a surfboard.

Rusty.

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