Tices Sholls Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, mate, let's talk about the next couple of weeks here at Tices Sholls (New Jersey). It's a sandbar setup, and straight off the bat, I gotta tell you, we're looking at a pretty grim run for a while. The water is sitting at 77°, which is much warmer than usual for this time of year – that's a nice little surprise if you're brave enough to get in, but the waves are gonna be the real letdown.

For the first few days, from the 19th through to the 22nd, it's just flat or near-flat with tiny, weak swell. The energy is practically non-existent (34 to 96), with short-period windswell that's barely a ripple. The wind is all over the place, and the conditions are just poor. Honestly, it's not worth paddling out. You'll be bobbing around more than you'll be surfing.

We get a little sniff of something on the 23rd morning with a glassy 0.7ft wave, but it's still mostly windswell. The energy is weak (42), and it's just "surfable but ordinary." That theme carries through the 24th and 25th – a tiny bit of size, but nothing to get excited about.

We hit a bit of a lump on the 26th and 27th with some short-period SSE swell pushing 4ft to 4ft, and even a moderate energy reading of 117 on the 26th afternoon. But the wind is all cross-onshore and messy, so it's gonna be a choppy, poor-quality mess. The 28th cleans up a bit with a cross-off breeze, but the swell is still weak and inconsistent.

Now, here's a glimmer of hope. On the 29th of August, Saturday morning, we finally get some offshore wind from the WNW. The swell is still small at 2ft from the SE, but it's clean. The energy is still weak (58), but a clean 2ft on a sandbar is a lot more fun than a choppy 4ft. This pattern of clean, tiny waves continues through the 30th morning and into the first few days of September. The 2nd of September morning looks alright with a light offshore wind and a 2ft SE swell, and the energy is building to 145 – still moderate, but at least the conditions are clean.

The best of the lot? I'd have to point you to the morning of Saturday, 29th August. The swell is tiny at 2ft from the SE, but you've got a clean offshore wind from the WNW. It's a beginner-friendly size, and the sandbar should be tidy. The other highlight is the morning of Wednesday, 2nd September. It's a bit further out, so less certain, but you've got a very light offshore wind, a 2ft SE swell, and the energy is the highest we've seen for a clean session at 145. It's a promising little window.

Overall, it's a tough couple of weeks. There's no big swell to speak of, just small, clean windows. If you're a beginner, those 2ft days with offshore wind are your best bet. For anyone else, it's a bit of a waiting game.

Rusty.

Read more