Atlantic Beach · Carteret County · North Carolina
Fort Macon Surf Report & Forecast, Atlantic Beach, NC
Fort Macon, Atlantic Beach, North Carolina: 1 ft, knee high, at 11 pm EST on Monday, Nov 9, rated Poor. The main swell is 1.0 ft at 11 seconds from the south-southeast, with calm wind. Water is about 68°F, so a 3/2 full wetsuit is the suggestion; the next low tide is 0.3 ft at 12:59 am.
1 ft
knee high · occasional 2 ft
- Swell
- 1.0 ft · 11 s · SSEplus 0.6 ft · 4 s · SW
- Wind
- calmcalm
- Tide
- 1.2 ft fallinglow 0.3 ft at 12:59 am
- Water
- 68°F3/2
- Air
- 59°Ffeels like 54°F
- Sun
- rise 6:35 amset 5:06 pm
Fort Macon surf today and tomorrow
Best-rated hour today at Fort Macon: 6 am, Poor, on a rising high tide.
Blue band: surf face height from the low end to set waves; dotted: occasional larger sets. Grey line: tide, in feet on the right scale. Colour strip: the hourly rating. Arrows: wind direction and strength, teal when offshore, orange when onshore.
Best-rated hour tomorrow at Fort Macon: 6 am, Poor, on a rising high tide.
Hour by hour as a table, today and tomorrow
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 2 ft | Poor | 11 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 4.6 ft |
| 7 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 12 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 18 | 4.7 ft |
| 8 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 11 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 17 | 4.3 ft |
| 9 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 10 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 3.6 ft |
| 10 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 10 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 2.6 ft |
| 11 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 10 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 1.6 ft |
| 12 pm | 1–2 ft | Poor | 10 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 0.8 ft |
| 1 pm | 1–2 ft | Poor | 10 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 0.5 ft |
| 2 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 11 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 17 | 0.6 ft |
| 3 pm | 1–2 ft | Poor | 10 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 16 | 1.2 ft |
| 4 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 9 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 14 | 2.0 ft |
| 5 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 8 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 2.9 ft |
| 6 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 7 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 3.4 ft |
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 4.1 ft |
| 7 am | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 4.5 ft |
| 8 am | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 4.4 ft |
| 9 am | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 3.9 ft |
| 10 am | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 3.1 ft |
| 11 am | 1 ft | Poor | 4 mph cross-shore (WSW) | 2.2 ft |
| 12 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 5 mph onshore (SW) | 1.3 ft |
| 1 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 7 mph onshore (SW) | 0.7 ft |
| 2 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 8 mph onshore (SW) | 0.5 ft |
| 3 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 8 mph onshore (SW) | 0.8 ft |
| 4 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 8 mph onshore (SW), gusts 13 | 1.5 ft |
| 5 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 8 mph onshore (SW), gusts 13 | 2.3 ft |
| 6 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 8 mph onshore (SW), gusts 13 | 3.0 ft |
Fort Macon waves today: sets, lulls and how they break
At 11 pm, sets at Fort Macon arrive about every minute with about 3 waves each, and the waves are mostly barreling and hollow.
- Set waves
- about 1.2 ft faces
- Waves per set
- about 3
- Sets
- every minute or so, each lasting about 3 s
- Lulls
- about 18 s between breaking waves
- How they break
- Barrelingwhich means the lip pitches out and can throw a barrel
- Shape
- Hollowwhich means throwing, barreling waves
- Breaking
- 3% of waves stand up and break where surfers sitThe rest roll through.
- Along-shore current
- moderate, about 0.7 mphThis is not a rip current forecast. For rip current risk, see the National Weather Service.
Fort Macon surf this weekend and the next 10 days
Next 10 days at Fort Macon: the biggest day is Thursday, Nov 12 at 1–4 ft, and the best-rated day is Thursday, Nov 12 (Poor). This weekend: Saturday, Nov 14, 0–1 ft and Poor; Sunday, Nov 15, flat (under 1 ft) and Poor.
Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24
Days 11–16 for Fort Macon are in the Current app with a Premium subscription.
Bars: surf face height from the low end to set waves, by day. Colour strip: the day's best rating. Arrows: main swell direction. Shaded: this weekend.
The 10-day forecast as a table, with swell and wind
| Day | Surf | Rating | Main swell | Wind am | Wind pm | Best time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | 1–2 ft | Poor | 1.6 ft · 4 s · WSW | 11 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 17 | 11 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 17 | 6 am |
| Tue, Nov 10 | 1 ft | Poor | 1.0 ft · 11 s · SSE | calm | 8 mph onshore (SW) | 5 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | 1 ft | Poor | 1.0 ft · 4 s · SSW | calm | 4 mph onshore (SSW) | 6 am |
| Thu, Nov 12 | 1–4 ft | Poor | 2.5 ft · 5 s · SSW | 13 mph cross-shore (WSW), gusts 19 | 18 mph onshore (SW), gusts 27 | 6 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | 1–2 ft | Poor | 1.5 ft · 6 s · SW | 14 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 15 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 7 am |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 0–1 ft | Poor | 0.3 ft · 2 s · SW | 15 mph cross-shore (NW), gusts 20 | 19 mph cross-shore (NW), gusts 26 | 1 pm |
| Sun, Nov 15 | flat (under 1 ft) | Poor | 0.2 ft · 2 s · SW | 12 mph cross-shore (NNW) | 7 mph cross-shore (NW) | 7 am |
| Mon, Nov 16 | flat (under 1 ft) | Poor | 0.1 ft · 8 s · SSE | 10 mph offshore (N), gusts 15 | 8 mph offshore (N), gusts 13 | 4 pm |
| Tue, Nov 17 | flat (under 1 ft) | Poor | — | 12 mph offshore (NNE) | 11 mph offshore (NNE) | 1 pm |
| Wed, Nov 18 | flat (under 1 ft) | Poor | — | 14 mph offshore (N), gusts 21 | 15 mph offshore (NNE) | 4 pm |
| Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24 | Days 11–16 for Fort Macon are in the Current app with a Premium subscription. Get the app | |||||
Fort Macon tide chart and tide times
Tides at Fort Macon today, Monday, Nov 9: high 4.7 ft at 6:41 am, low 0.5 ft at 1:11 pm and high 3.6 ft at 6:54 pm. At 11 pm the tide is 1.2 ft and falling.
Fort Macon tide chart, November 2026
| Day | Tides |
|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | High 4.7 ft at 6:41 amLow 0.5 ft at 1:11 pmHigh 3.6 ft at 6:54 pm |
| Tue, Nov 10 | Low 0.3 ft at 12:59 amHigh 4.5 ft at 7:21 amLow 0.5 ft at 1:50 pmHigh 3.5 ft at 7:31 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | Low 0.4 ft at 1:36 amHigh 4.6 ft at 8:04 amLow 0.9 ft at 2:32 pmHigh 3.7 ft at 8:14 pm |
| Thu, Nov 12 | Low 1.0 ft at 2:16 amHigh 4.8 ft at 8:40 amLow 1.2 ft at 3:20 pmHigh 3.5 ft at 8:54 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | Low 1.0 ft at 3:02 amHigh 4.5 ft at 9:27 amLow 1.4 ft at 4:01 pmHigh 3.6 ft at 9:38 pm |
| Sat, Nov 14 | Low 1.3 ft at 3:50 amHigh 4.2 ft at 10:05 amLow 1.1 ft at 4:58 pmHigh 3.0 ft at 10:29 pm |
| Sun, Nov 15 | Low 1.0 ft at 4:39 amHigh 3.8 ft at 10:58 amLow 1.0 ft at 5:42 pmHigh 3.0 ft at 11:22 pm |
| Mon, Nov 16 | Low 1.1 ft at 5:35 amHigh 3.7 ft at 11:49 amLow 1.1 ft at 6:29 pm |
| Tue, Nov 17 | High 3.2 ft at 12:20 amLow 1.2 ft at 6:33 amHigh 3.7 ft at 12:39 pm |
Tide predictions, not observations. Heights in feet above MLLW.
Fort Macon water temperature
The water temperature at Fort Macon is about 68°F on Monday, Nov 9. With the air feeling like 54°F and a 1 mph wind, a 3/2 full wetsuit is the suggestion. Over the next week the water stays between 67 and 71°F.
Water temperature is a forecast for the water at this spot, not a buoy reading. The wetsuit suggestion uses Billabong's wetsuit temperature scale, adjusted for air temperature and wind.
Surf spots near Fort Macon
- Oceanana Pier / The Circle2.6 mi W · 1 ft · Poor
- Pine Knoll Shores9.3 mi W · 1–2 ft · Poor
- Indian Beach / Salter Path12 mi W · 1 ft · Poor
- Bogue Inlet Pier20 mi W · 1 ft · Poor
- The Point24 mi W · 1–2 ft · Poor
- North Topsail Beach44 mi WSW · 2 ft · Fair
Rated right now. The Current app animates the surf itself on a live map of the whole coast. See the app →
About Fort Macon
Fort Macon is a jetty in Atlantic Beach, Carteret County, North Carolina, facing south-southwest. Also called Beaufort Inlet and Fort Macon Jetty.
Follow Fort Macon in the Current app
The first 10 days are free, and Premium adds days 11–16.
Forecasts are estimates. Never rely on them for safety. For rip current risk and beach hazards, check the National Weather Service. Forecasts from Current's novel physics simulation. No AI. No black boxes. Ocean and weather data: NOAA (U.S. government data). NOAA does not endorse this site.