Staying Home Sucks, home
Gazebo on The Plaza Montauk
Montauk, the nearest town, 6 km away. Photo: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The Ranch

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

22Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Sun 8: 5 ft swell at 8 s, onshore wind, 13 kn (24 km/h)

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 6 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 shollow
Energy
18kJ
Wind
WSW 10 kn
Temp
16°C

Wed 4 · 4 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 shollow
Energy
10kJ
Wind
SW 8 kn
Temp
16°C

Thu 5 · 2 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 smushy
Energy
22kJ
Wind
SW 10 kn
Temp
17°C

Fri 6 · 14 out of 100

Swell
4 ft6 smushy
Energy
122kJ
Wind
S 10 kn
Temp
17°C

Sat 7 · 18 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 smushy
Energy
214kJ
Wind
SW 10 kn
Temp
17°C

Sun 8 · 45 out of 100

Swell
5 ft8 smushy
Energy
306kJ
Wind
WNW 13 kn
Temp
13°C

Mon 9 · 28 out of 100

Swell
3 ft7 smushy
Energy
100kJ
Wind
N 10 kn
Temp
13°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 25, too small
  2. Tue 36, too small
  3. Wed 44, too small
  4. Thu 52, too small
  5. Fri 614, too small
  6. Sat 718, too small
  7. Sun 845, fair
  8. Mon 928, too small
  9. Tue 1020, too small
  10. Wed 117, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
  • Offshore: NWwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–10 ftof swell
  • Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at The Ranch, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov5, too small1 ft8 shollow2 ft at break (est.)17kJwind from the west-south-west, 10 knots15°C
Tue 3Nov6, too small1 ft8 shollow2 ft at break (est.)18kJwind from the west-south-west, 10 knots16°C
Wed 4Nov4, too small1 ft8 shollow2 ft at break (est.)10kJwind from the south-west, 8 knots16°C
Thu 5Nov2, too small2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)22kJwind from the south-west, 10 knots17°C
Fri 6Nov14, too small4 ft6 smushy5 ft at break (est.)122kJwind from the south, 10 knots17°C
Sat 7Nov18, too small5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)214kJwind from the south-west, 10 knots17°C
Sun 8Nov45, fair5 ft8 smushy7 ft at break (est.)306kJwind from the west-north-west, 13 knots, offshore13°C
Mon 9Nov28, too small3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)100kJwind from the north, 10 knots, offshore13°C
Tue 10Nov20, too small3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)58kJwind from the north-west, 18 knots, offshore12°C
Wed 11Nov7, too small3 ft6 smushy1 ft at break (est.)43kJwind from the north-west, 24 knots, offshore12°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Mon 2 NovHigh 01:06 +0.4 mLow 07:06 −0.3 mHigh 13:31 +0.5 mLow 19:52 −0.4 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 02:14 +0.5 mLow 08:23 −0.3 mHigh 14:37 +0.5 mLow 20:53 −0.4 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 03:15 +0.5 mLow 09:31 −0.4 mHigh 15:36 +0.4 mLow 21:47 −0.5 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About The Ranch

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces SE (144°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (324°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 250 m out (1 in 26). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 6°C in February, its coldest month (5/4 or 6/5, hood, boots and gloves), and 22°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Montauk, 6 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 7 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,110–US$1,970 each

about US$1,110–US$1,970 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to HVN, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$161–US$335
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$154–US$255
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$301–US$502
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$636
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$147–US$241
Totalabout US$1,110–US$1,970

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 3 towns

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Montauk

about 15 min by car · 33 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 33 places to stay in Montauk · Booking.com

About Montauk its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$114 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 6h

About 6h door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → HVN, direct, then 1h 45m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.