🇺🇸 FOLLY BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA

Folly Beach

Charleston's surf town, warmer water and laid-back vibe

FLAT

Live Conditions

Conditions Summary

Small 1.9ft surf — but short 5s period indicates wind swell, expect choppy conditions — swell direction is wrong for this spot, expect poor shape — cross-onshore wind affecting quality — Note: this is outside the peak season for this spot

HIGH CONFIDENCEFresh buoy data + calibrated transformation

Why it's FLAT

Swell Direction

Primary swell is 197° — wrong angle. This spot needs 90° swells to break properly.

Swell Period

4s — this is wind chop, not groundswell. Waves will be weak and disorganized.

Wind

9mph cross-shore — not ideal but surfable if wind is light

Tide

Rising tide — workable window

Season

June is off-season — rare for this spot to get quality waves

Data Confidence

Fresh buoy data with calibrated coastal transformation

At the Break

1.9ft

HIGH CONFIDENCE

Fresh buoy data + calibrated transformation

Period

✗ Wind swell

Wind

9mph

CROSS-SHORE

Water

81°F

Boardshorts

Live Buoy 41004

2.3ft

43 min ago

Tide

MID-TIDE · RISING

0.59ft

Next high: in 4 hr 47 min

Swell Direction

15%

Wind Direction

45%

Primary Swell

1.3ft @ 3.0s

S 181°

Secondary Swell

0.6ft @ 7.5s

ESE 118°

10 Day Outlook

3.3ft

TODAY

Jun 14

(4s)

4.3ft

TMRW

Jun 15

(5s)

4.5ft

TUE

Jun 16

(5s)

3.3ft

WED

Jun 17

(5s)

3.8ft

THU

Jun 18

(7s)

4.7ft

FRI

Jun 19

(6s)

3.0ft

SAT

Jun 20

(7s)

2.2ft

SUN

Jun 21

(7s)

1.9ft

MON

Jun 22

(7s)

1.9ft

TUE

Jun 23

(6s)

Best this week: SAT Jun 20 — 3.0ft

Best next week: MON Jun 22 — 1.9ft

Model Breakdown

ECMWF (45%)1.5ft

ICON (35%)1.5ft

GFS (20%)1.8ft

Model confidence95%

Updated every 30 mins · Open-Meteo ECMWF + ICON + GFS

About

Folly Beach is the surf beach for Charleston, a barrier island with a distinct local culture. The Washout (at the north end near the old hurricane erosion zone) is the quality wave. Water is warmer than New England — wetsuit season is shorter. Hurricane swell delivers the best days.

The Break

The Washout at Folly Beach County Park — beach break with reef-like structure from the old erosion scarp.

Ideal Conditions

E/NE swell 3-8ft, offshore W/NW wind, mid tide

Best Months

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Best months highlighted · Current: Jun

Trip Planner

Folly Beach Warm Water Weekend

Weekend · 3 Days

Friday

Fly into Charleston, drive 20 mins to Folly Beach. Check The Washout.

Saturday

Session at The Washout. Afternoon explore Folly Beach town.

Sunday

Morning session, explore Charleston downtown before flying home.

Charleston Folly Beach Week

Full Week · 7 Days

Day 1

Arrive Charleston, drive to Folly Beach, settle in, scout The Washout.

Day 2-4

Multiple sessions at The Washout and nearby beach peaks.

Day 5

Final session, explore Charleston downtown or return to Folly.

Local Knowledge

The Washout gets crowded — walk north along the beach to find cleaner peaks when it's firing.

Warmer water than New England.

Full town infrastructure and Charleston day-trip option.