Surf spot

Bay Head

Forecast conditions and map view for Bay Head in USA, North East, New Jersey. Open the interactive surf map to inspect wind, waves, and nearby spots.

Country: USA, North East, New Jersey
Coordinates: 40.0770, -74.0395

Metric
Metric	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00	06:00	09:00	12:00	15:00	18:00	21:00	00:00	03:00
Wave height (m)	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.6	0.7	0.7	0.6	0.7	0.6	0.6	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.5	0.8	0.7	0.6	0.6	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.5	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.3
Wave direction	SSE	SSE	SSE	SE	SE	SSE	SE	SE	SE	ESE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SE	SE	ENE	N	ENE	ENE	ENE	E	E	E	E	E	E	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	ESE	E	E	ESE	E	E	E	E	E	E	ESE	ESE
Wave period (s)	4.3	5.3	4.3	5.5	5.4	4.3	7.2	7	6.9	2.8	3.3	3.5	3.6	4	3.8	4	4.1	4.1	4.7	6	6	5.7	5.5	7.2	4.8	3.5	4.6	4.3	3.9	4.2	4.5	4.8	3.6	4.3	4.5	4.8	5	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.3	5.3	5.4	5.5	5.6	5.5	5.7	5.5	5.4	5.3	5.3	5.4	4.7	4.5
Wave energy (kJ)	5	10	5	4	4	2	9	10	10	1	8	10	12	13	13	11	11	9	8	20	17	13	10	11	2	2	10	21	15	14	15	12	5	10	11	16	17	18	18	18	18	18	19	18	17	11	11	14	12	13	10	10	9	8	6	5
Wind speed (km/h)	7.8	5.6	0.8	12.4	18.2	16.9	15	14.3	14.7	13.9	13.9	11	9.9	4.1	10	7.1	10.6	19.6	18.3	19.6	17.3	15.8	17.2	20	21.1	19.6	17.4	17.9	16.7	14.8	9.8	13	6.5	7.1	7.8	11.9	11.7	12.5	10.4	7.8	5.9	4.5	3.1	8.7	18	19.7	17.9	13.4	13.3	11.7	12.7	14.6	17.1	12.6	8.7	16.1
Wind direction	WNWOffshore	NWCross-off	WNWGlassy	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SWCross-off	WNWOffshore	WNWOffshore	NNWGlassy	SSECross-on	SWCross-off	WSWOffshore	NWCross-off	NNWCross-off	NCross	NCross	NCross	NNECross-on	NNECross-on	NECross-on	NECross-on	NECross-on	ENEOnshore	EOnshore	EOnshore	EOnshore	ESEOnshore	EOnshore	ENEOnshore	ENEOnshore	EOnshore	ESEOnshore	SECross-on	SECross-on	SSECross	SWCross-off	WSWGlassy	WSWGlassy	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SSECross-on	SCross	SSWCross-off	SSWCross-off	SWCross-off	WSWOffshore	WNWCross-off	NNWCross-off	NNWCross-off	WNWCross-off	NNECross-on

Bay Head, New Jersey (USA, Northeast) is a classic Mid-Atlantic beach break on the Jersey Shore, known for its consistent but often unruly surf. It sits in a relatively exposed stretch of coast, so it can pick up plenty of swell from the Atlantic, especially during fall and winter storms.

What it’s like

Wave type: Mostly beach break, with shifting sandbars.
Consistency: Can be fairly consistent compared with more sheltered spots, but quality depends a lot on sand movement and storm activity.
Wave quality: Often fast, powerful, and hollow-ish when conditions line up; can also be choppy and crowded.
Best swell: Works well with east, southeast, and northeast swells.
Wind: Typically best with light offshore westerly winds; onshore winds can make it messy quickly.
Tide: Can be tide-sensitive, with different sandbars working better at different stages of the tide.

Conditions and season

Best season: Usually fall and winter for the cleanest, most powerful surf.
Summer: Smaller, softer waves are more common, though there can still be fun days.
Storm surf: Nor’easters and distant Atlantic storms can produce solid surf.

Crowd and access

Bay Head is a popular Jersey Shore surf location, so expect crowds when conditions are good.
Access is generally through public beach entrances, but local beach rules, badges, and seasonal restrictions may apply.

Good for

Intermediate to advanced surfers when the surf is bigger and more powerful.
Beginners on smaller, gentler days, though the shifting beach break can still be tricky.

Overall

Bay Head is a reliable Jersey beach break that can produce fun, punchy surf when Atlantic swell and offshore winds line up. It’s best known for powerful, short-period beach break waves rather than long, peeling lines.