Hurricane VS Noreasters

Quality of surf, hurricanes distant enough to have fetch to give us great waves, win hands down.
Nor'easters come with NE winds, which....suck!

 

I think I would take the offshore cane

 

Down here noreasters give us large quality surf with sometimes offshore winds when the cold fronts first come thru. Maybe an hour or two window some fronts, sometimes a couple days of offshores before the high pressure goes east on other fronts.

The biggest waves we get (maybe 15 foot faces plus) are from cold fronts like the Halloween swell, and some March no name swells.

The best day of surfing I can remember was when there was two hurricanes offshore, Cindy and Dennis, and they were out below Bermuda for a week. Light offshores all day long. DOH with long lulls outside the Juno Pier. Rides 400 yards long. Super easy drop ins, totally peeling all the way to the beach.

 

I've noticed on the beaches of the NE, after dredging was done, Hurricanes/trop depressions deliver close out surf(from watching cams and people not making waves). However surfing winter storms I rarely had anything closing out on me so at this moment I'd prefer Nor'easters.

 

The dredging around here screws up the break for a while, too, but it comes back. I think every day I surfed last winter was pretty decent

 

2000 that hurricane that parked off the New Jerseyian coast and pumped DOH to HH in Ol' Harvey for three days straight

Ah nor'easters are the best..all my favorite spots dance with a northeast swell and I love lefts

 

True. that.

 

That week of (Cindy/Dennis) swell in 1999 from those two hurricanes was epic on Delmarva. The saturday morning of that swell was just like you described....well overhead, glassy. I still cant believe how uncrowded it was back then compared to now....firing on a Saturday, last week of August.

But northeasters hands down are where we get the best waves on Delmarva, when the winds switch w/nw after they pass. Especially if you like lefts.

 

I remember during the Cindy/Dennis love-a-thon, it was so hot on the beach, after catching those bombs, walking back in the bright August sun, no wind near the dunes, I had to hang under the pier and suck up some shade for a spell after each long azz ride before taking the conveyor belt south along the pilings back out into the fun zone. Magic does happen.

 

Offshore hurricane but not too huge.
Like a Cat 1 or 2 between us and Bermuda.
Actually I think the best swells I've ever surfed in NJ were from Tropical Storms.
When they are too big the swell period gets too long and the EC beach breaks are walled and closed out.
A nice 9-12 second period SE is perfect. Once the period gets beyond that it's close outs.

 

I remember the same thing about that swell. I think Dennis peaked on Labor Day weekend. They were some of the longest rides I've ever had in New Jersey. Me and maybe 3 other guys had the wooden jetty all to ourselves. Rides lasted all the way down into the bird sanctuary. I'm always thankful for every wave I ride, every chance I get to surf, but we could sure use some sh!t like that swell right about now.

 

Nor'Ida anyone?

 

hands down nor easters for me
NE winds are sideshore in SJ and offshore in deep SJ

powerful canes make too long period walled swells
gimme 10'@10 sec from the 90 degree mark anyday for an EC swell

 

Yeah that's the one or two I be talkin' bout...LBI fired that whole weekend Chavez

I was a young lad and those barrels seemed wide enough to fit semi's in on Saturday of that weekend

There were maybe a third of the seasonal surfers there are now back then

Hudson Ave was firing...those long lost gems of jettys were firing

Ah man this thread or tread made my day

 

IDC!!!!!!!!!!!


Waves are waves....pick n choose your spot/wave.

 

yeah man, I was only 37 years old back then and at the height of my power. I also remember that weekend being one of the first that I was off Parole. No more pee pee tests. Many, MANY joints were rolled that weekend. Many potions ingested.
Back on topic: I prefer Nor Easters because as Mitch and Jawn both said: crowds. It seems the Summer Pro has become the Summer/Hurricane swell pro. All the cane-swell hype and the 3/2 they bought at ****'s Sporting Goods brings them back. It easy to spread out but everyone clumps together like it's mid-July.
Come February, Nor Easter blows through, not enough time for hype, you got one day before the NW winds blow it flat, all the knuckleheads are gone, the water's freezing, the wind is howling, barrels are spittin, and the thought that runs through the mind: damn, this is awesome!
Then you head to Wawa and get a hot chocolate, a meatball shorty with provolone, and a donut. Then home for some Jack Daniels on the rocks and a spliff.

 

A sad state of surfing when in September all we have for good surf is memories of past autumns.

 

Farts vs. Sharts

 

In my home town I'd have to say winter snow storms produce the best surf. Best surf I've ever caught though was a hurricane swell in the late 90s in Cape May that had the most unbelievable and easily makable backside tubes I've ever encountered. Just a dream session. A couple feet overhead to way overhead........dredging perfect tubes just feet off of the beach.......easy paddle out.....3 or 4 stroke paddle ins and easy drop.....pull in and set your line for half a block without a drop of water out of place.