Cape Hatteras Alert Guide

North Carolina, USA · part of the Cape Hatteras spot guide

The Cape Hatteras East buoy (41120) sits about 22 km off the Point and is the directional reference for the whole area, so a live-observation alert is a sound trigger. The height below is the buoy reading, not the face.

The forecaster's checklist

1. 1.Know which engine you’re tracking: an offshore hurricane means east-to-south groundswell and the Third’s rights; a Nor’easter or front means north-to-northeast swell and the First’s lefts.
2. 2.Read the buoy (41120): direction picks the side, and period is the quality filter — 12 seconds and up refracts cleanly, while 7 to 10 is disorganized wind swell.
3. 3.The sweet spot is roughly 3 to 6 ft at 12 to 15 seconds; past 6 ft at 14 seconds it pushes toward maxing and chaos on the shoals.
4. 4.Want a west-to-northwest offshore, and match the clean side to the wind — one face is often groomed while the other is torn up.
5. 5.Big-hurricane reality check: a close major often over-delivers into long-period closeouts breaking far out on the shoals; weaker, closer systems frequently produce better surf.

Local winds & tide

Best wind: W–NW offshore (match the clean side of the apex to the wind) — from 270° to 340° (W–NNW).

Surfable at all stages of tide, though the best follows the current sandbar; the strongest rips run a couple hours either side of low tide.

Dial it in