Staying Home Sucks, home
Sea Girt Lighthouse October 2020
Sea Girt, the nearest town, 1 km away. Photo: King of Hearts, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Pipes

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

22Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Sun 8: 4 ft swell at 8 s, 4 hours of offshore wind

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 6 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 scrumbling
Energy
15kJ
Wind
WSW 5 kn
Temp
16°C

Wed 4 · 3 out of 100

Swell
1 ft7 smushy
Energy
6kJ
Wind
S 3 kn
Temp
17°C

Thu 5 · 10 out of 100

Swell
2 ft6 smushy
Energy
32kJ
Wind
S 9 kn
Temp
18°C

Fri 6 · 20 out of 100

Swell
4 ft6 smushy
Energy
98kJ
Wind
S 11 kn
Temp
18°C

Sat 7 · 30 out of 100

Swell
4 ft7 smushy
Energy
114kJ
Wind
E 2 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 38 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 smushy
Energy
173kJ
Wind
WNW 9 kn
Temp
14°C

Mon 9 · 18 out of 100

Swell
3 ft8 smushy
Energy
96kJ
Wind
SE 3 kn
Temp
13°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 24, too small
  2. Tue 36, too small
  3. Wed 43, too small
  4. Thu 510, too small
  5. Fri 620, too small
  6. Sat 730, too small
  7. Sun 838, too small
  8. Mon 918, too small
  9. Tue 1015, too small
  10. Wed 116, too small

The spot in six facts

  • Faces Etakes swell from the E
  • Offshore: Wwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–10 ftof swell
  • Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
  • Best Sep–Oct2 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Pipes, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov4, too small1 ft10 shollow2 ft at break (est.)10kJwind from the south, 8 knots15°C
Tue 3Nov6, too small1 ft8 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)15kJwind from the west-south-west, 5 knots, offshore16°C
Wed 4Nov3, too small1 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.)6kJwind from the south, 3 knots17°C
Thu 5Nov10, too small2 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.)32kJwind from the south, 9 knots18°C
Fri 6Nov20, too small4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)98kJwind from the south, 11 knots18°C
Sat 7Nov30, too small4 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)114kJwind from the east, 2 knots18°C
Sun 8Nov38, too small4 ft8 smushy5 ft at break (est.)173kJwind from the west-north-west, 9 knots, offshore14°C
Mon 9Nov18, too small3 ft8 smushy4 ft at break (est.)96kJwind from the south-east, 3 knots13°C
Tue 10Nov15, too small2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)43kJwind from the west-north-west, 15 knots, offshore12°C
Wed 11Nov6, too small1 ft8 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)12kJwind from the west, 15 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 00:55 +0.5 mLow 06:54 −0.5 mHigh 13:14 +0.8 mLow 19:46 −0.7 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 02:04 +0.6 mLow 08:06 −0.5 mHigh 14:21 +0.7 mLow 20:46 −0.7 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 03:06 +0.7 mLow 09:12 −0.6 mHigh 15:23 +0.7 mLow 21:40 −0.7 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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More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Pipes

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

The spot faces E (101°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (281°). 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 gently: 10 m deep about 500 m out (1 in 51). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 5°C in February, its coldest month (5/4 or 6/5, hood, boots and gloves), and 24°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually September and October, with about 2 good days in 7; in July, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Sea Girt, 1.1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 10 surf spots, 1 wind sports spot and 1 kayak 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$1,100–US$1,970 each

about US$1,100–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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to EWR, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$154–US$329
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$154–US$255
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$302–US$503
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$637
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$148–US$242
Totalabout US$1,100–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

Sea Girt

about 5 min by car · 14 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 14 places to stay in Sea Girt · Booking.com

About Sea Girt 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 5h 20m

About 5h 20m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → EWR, direct, then 1h 25m by road

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

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.