Wildwood Crest Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a long, hard look at what’s on the menu for Wildwood Crest over the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, it’s a pretty quiet stretch. The beginning of the run is a write-off. From July 20th right through to the morning of the 22nd, the wave heights are tiny—under 3 ft—and the wind is all over the shop, mostly onshore or cross-onshore, making it choppy and messy. There’s no real energy to speak of either, with the combined swell energy barely cracking 100 (29 to 73). The water temp is sitting at 76°, which feels a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won’t need a thick suit.

We start to see a glimmer of hope on the morning of Wednesday, July 22nd. The swell bumps up to 4 ft from the South, with a period of 8 seconds, and a cross-offshore wind from the WSW. The combined energy jumps to a moderate 213, and the surf looks clean. But it’s still a no-go for the morning with a "poor surf conditions" tag. The afternoon of the 22nd is slightly better, with 4 ft of SSE swell, a 9-second period, and a clean look from a gentle WSW breeze. The energy is a moderate 222 here. It’s only rated as marginal, but this is likely the best of a very average bunch for the first week.

The real standout, if you can wait, is Wednesday, July 29th. The afternoon session brings a clean 4 ft swell from the SSE, with a period of 9 seconds, and a light offshore wind from the WNW. The combined energy jumps to a solid 320, which is the strongest we see across the whole 16-day forecast. The forecast actually says "expect good surf conditions." This is the one to pencil in. The wind is light and offshore, the swell has a bit of push, and it should be clean. For a beginner-friendly spot like Wildwood Crest, this is as good as it gets in this window.

Between that, the rest of the period is a real struggle. There are pockets of clean surf, like the morning of July 28th with 4 ft of S swell, but it’s only rated "poor surf conditions" and the period is a short, weak 6 seconds. The very end of the run, into August, is a repeat of the same story: tiny waves, poor energy, and mostly onshore winds.

For the die-hards: if you’ve got the patience, that Wednesday afternoon, July 29th, is your best bet. The swell is modest but the conditions should be clean. The rest of the time, it’s a flat spell. Don’t expect much else.

Rusty.

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