POINT JUDITH, R.I. — Hurricane Franklin kicked up major surf here, providing New England surfers the first healthy set of waves this hurricane season.
Surfers in and around Boston rely heavily on storms to bring in solid sets, something that belies the constant West Coast waves that East Coast rippers constantly dream of at night.
Waves pounded Point Judith, Rhode Island all day with sets topping out at head-high or 2 feet overhead, according to Surfline, a forecasting site for surfers.
New Hampshire and Maine saw some surf but the action was down south, where surfers also packed Narragansett Beach and Scarborough State Beach.
But surfers north of Boston were likely anxiously looking at the forecast for the rest of the week, which showed a potential for waves on Thursday and Friday in the Granite and Pine Tree states.
Hurricane Franklin was “well off-shore” of New England, too far away to impact weather in Boston, said National Weather Service meteorologist Bryce Williams.
But the hurricane was close enough to generate increased surf and potential for dangerous rip currents over the next 24 hours, Williams said.
“So what happens is when we get those storms that are tracking towards New England, their winds are sending energy in the waves north towards us,” Williams told the Herald. “Once it reaches us, which it started to, we will continue to see the swells getting larger and the rip currents risk being a concern.”
The National Weather Service in Norton had a high rip current risk along the south coasts of Block Island, Martha’s Vineyard, and Nantucket.
“We’ve got a moderate risk of rip currents for pretty much all the rest of our south facing beaches,” Williams said.
The National Hurricane Center warned of “life-threatening” surf and rip currents along the east coast.
“These conditions are expected to continue during the next couple of days,” the center said, likely to the delight of every New England surfer.
