Buxton · Dare County · North Carolina
Old Lighthouse Surf Report & Forecast, Buxton, NC
Old Lighthouse, Buxton, North Carolina: 4 ft, chest to head high, at 3 pm EST on Monday, Nov 9, rated Fair. The main swell is 3.1 ft at 11 seconds from the east-southeast, with a 16 mph offshore wind from the west-northwest, gusting 23 mph. Water is about 67°F, so a 3/2 full wetsuit is the suggestion; the next high tide is 2.5 ft at 7:03 pm.
4 ft
chest to head high · occasional 5 ft
- Swell
- 3.1 ft · 11 s · ESEplus 1.3 ft · 4 s · WSW
- Wind
- 16 mph (WNW), gusts 23offshore
- Tide
- 0.7 ft risinghigh 2.5 ft at 7:03 pm
- Water
- 67°F3/2
- Air
- 64°Ffeels like 55°F
- Sun
- rise 6:31 amset 5 pm
Old Lighthouse surf today and tomorrow
Best-rated hour today at Old Lighthouse: 11 am, Fair, on a falling low 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 Old Lighthouse: 10 am, Good, on a falling high tide.
Hour by hour as a table, today and tomorrow
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 4 ft | Fair | 19 mph offshore (W), gusts 28 | 3.6 ft |
| 7 am | 4 ft | Fair | 19 mph offshore (W), gusts 28 | 3.7 ft |
| 8 am | 4 ft | Fair | 18 mph offshore (W), gusts 27 | 3.4 ft |
| 9 am | 4–5 ft | Fair | 17 mph offshore (W), gusts 26 | 2.8 ft |
| 10 am | 4–5 ft | Fair | 16 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 23 | 2.0 ft |
| 11 am | 4 ft | Fair | 16 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 23 | 1.2 ft |
| 12 pm | 4 ft | Fair | 15 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 23 | 0.6 ft |
| 1 pm | 4 ft | Fair | 16 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 23 | 0.3 ft |
| 2 pm | 3–4 ft | Fair | 15 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 22 | 0.4 ft |
| 3 pmnow | 3–4 ft | Fair | 13 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 20 | 0.7 ft |
| 4 pm | 4 ft | Fair | 13 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 18 | 1.3 ft |
| 5 pm | 3–4 ft | Fair | 15 mph offshore (NW), gusts 21 | 1.9 ft |
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 3–4 ft | Fair | 5 mph offshore (W) | 3.1 ft |
| 7 am | 3 ft | Fair | 5 mph offshore (WSW) | 3.5 ft |
| 8 am | 3 ft | Fair | 5 mph offshore (WSW) | 3.5 ft |
| 9 am | 3 ft | Fair | 6 mph offshore (WSW) | 3.1 ft |
| 10 am | 3–4 ft | Good | 8 mph offshore (WSW) | 2.5 ft |
| 11 am | 3 ft | Fair | 9 mph offshore (SW), gusts 14 | 1.7 ft |
| 12 pm | 3 ft | Fair | 11 mph offshore (WSW), gusts 16 | 1.0 ft |
| 1 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 14 mph offshore (WSW), gusts 19 | 0.5 ft |
| 2 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 14 mph offshore (WSW), gusts 21 | 0.3 ft |
| 3 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 15 mph offshore (SW), gusts 21 | 0.5 ft |
| 4 pm | 3 ft | Fair | 14 mph offshore (SW), gusts 20 | 0.9 ft |
| 5 pm | 3–4 ft | Fair | 14 mph cross-shore (SW), gusts 21 | 1.5 ft |
Old Lighthouse waves today: sets, lulls and how they break
At 3 pm, sets at Old Lighthouse arrive about every 2 minutes with about 3 waves each, and the waves are mostly spilling and crumbly.
- Set waves
- about 4.2 ft faces
- Waves per set
- about 3
- Sets
- every 2 minutes or so, each lasting about 14 s
- Lulls
- about 53 s between breaking waves
- How they break
- Spillingwhich means soft, crumbling whitewater
- Shape
- Crumblywhich means whitewater rolls gently down the face
- Breaking
- 41% of waves stand up and break where surfers sitThe rest roll through.
- Along-shore current
- moderate, about 1 mphThis is not a rip current forecast. For rip current risk, see the National Weather Service.
Old Lighthouse surf this weekend and the next 10 days
Next 10 days at Old Lighthouse: the biggest day is Monday, Nov 9 at 3–5 ft, and the best-rated day is Tuesday, Nov 10 (Good). This weekend: Saturday, Nov 14, 1 ft and Poor; Sunday, Nov 15, 1 ft and Poor.
Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24
Days 11–16 for Old Lighthouse 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 | 3–5 ft | Fair | 3.2 ft · 11 s · ESE | 18 mph offshore (W), gusts 27 | 15 mph offshore (WNW), gusts 22 | 11 am |
| Tue, Nov 10 | 3–4 ft | Good | 2.4 ft · 11 s · ESE | 5 mph offshore (WSW) | 14 mph offshore (WSW), gusts 21 | 10 am |
| Wed, Nov 11 | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | 2.0 ft · 10 s · E | 8 mph cross-shore (N), gusts 13 | calm | 8 am |
| Thu, Nov 12 | 1–2 ft | Poor | 1.7 ft · 6 s · S | 15 mph offshore (WSW), gusts 23 | 25 mph offshore (WSW), gusts 39 | 4 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | 1 ft | Poor | 2.5 ft · 7 s · WSW | 23 mph offshore (W), gusts 34 | 21 mph offshore (W), gusts 31 | 6 am |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 1 ft | Poor | 0.8 ft · 4 s · WNW | 26 mph offshore (NW), gusts 37 | 21 mph offshore (NW), gusts 31 | 4 pm |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 1 ft | Poor | 1.5 ft · 7 s · NNE | 21 mph offshore (NW), gusts 30 | 16 mph offshore (NW), gusts 23 | 4 pm |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 1–2 ft | Poor | 2.0 ft · 7 s · NNE | 16 mph cross-shore (NNW), gusts 24 | 15 mph cross-shore (NNW), gusts 23 | 1 pm |
| Tue, Nov 17 | 1–2 ft | Poor | — | 18 mph cross-shore (N) | 19 mph cross-shore (N) | 10 am |
| Wed, Nov 18 | 2 ft | Poor | — | 18 mph cross-shore (NNE) | 22 mph cross-shore (NNE) | 4 pm |
| Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24 | Days 11–16 for Old Lighthouse are in the Current app with a Premium subscription. Get the app | |||||
Old Lighthouse tide chart and tide times
Tides at Old Lighthouse today, Monday, Nov 9: low 0.2 ft at 12:12 am, high 3.7 ft at 6:48 am, low 0.3 ft at 1:19 pm and high 2.5 ft at 7:03 pm. At 3 pm the tide is 0.7 ft and rising.
Old Lighthouse tide chart, November 2026
| Day | Tides |
|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | Low 0.2 ft at 12:12 amHigh 3.7 ft at 6:48 amLow 0.3 ft at 1:19 pmHigh 2.5 ft at 7:03 pm |
| Tue, Nov 10 | Low 0.2 ft at 12:51 amHigh 3.5 ft at 7:28 amLow 0.3 ft at 1:59 pmHigh 2.5 ft at 7:45 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | Low 0.4 ft at 1:29 amHigh 3.7 ft at 8:09 amLow 0.6 ft at 2:40 pmHigh 2.6 ft at 8:27 pm |
| Thu, Nov 12 | Low 0.8 ft at 2:05 amHigh 3.9 ft at 8:50 amLow 1.1 ft at 3:24 pmHigh 2.8 ft at 9:08 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | Low 1.1 ft at 2:49 amHigh 3.9 ft at 9:31 amLow 1.2 ft at 4:11 pmHigh 2.8 ft at 9:47 pm |
| Sat, Nov 14 | Low 1.1 ft at 3:40 amHigh 3.4 ft at 10:12 amLow 0.9 ft at 5:02 pmHigh 2.3 ft at 10:39 pm |
| Sun, Nov 15 | Low 0.8 ft at 4:26 amHigh 3.0 ft at 11:02 amLow 0.7 ft at 5:44 pmHigh 2.2 ft at 11:33 pm |
| Mon, Nov 16 | Low 0.8 ft at 5:20 amHigh 2.8 ft at 11:51 amLow 0.6 ft at 6:29 pm |
| Tue, Nov 17 | High 2.2 ft at 12:31 amLow 0.8 ft at 6:18 amHigh 2.7 ft at 12:41 pm |
Tide predictions, not observations. Heights in feet above MLLW.
Old Lighthouse water temperature
The water temperature at Old Lighthouse is about 67°F on Monday, Nov 9. With the air feeling like 55°F and a 16 mph wind, a 3/2 full wetsuit is the suggestion. Over the next week the water stays between 64 and 70°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 Old Lighthouse
- Frisco Beach5.8 mi WSW · 2 ft · Poor
- Avon Pier6.8 mi N · 4–5 ft · Good
- Salvo / Waves21 mi N · 4–5 ft · Good
- Rodanthe Pier23 mi N · 4–5 ft · Good
- S-Turns25 mi N · 4–5 ft · Good
- Ocracoke Island27 mi WSW · 3–4 ft · Fair
Rated right now. The Current app animates the surf itself on a live map of the whole coast. See the app →
About Old Lighthouse
Old Lighthouse is a jetty in Buxton, Dare County, North Carolina, facing east. Also called Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Old Light, Hatteras Lighthouse and The Lighthouse.
Follow Old Lighthouse 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.