The Sands
South Carolina · United States
Rating right now
The Sands is a E-facing sand beach on the United States shoreline, opening onto the Gulf of Mexico — it catches NE–SE swell, and offshore SW–NW winds tidy the banks through april–october.
Today's surf at The Sands
Updated 23:52 spot time
The Sands surf report for Wednesday 30 Sept: waves 0.5 ft–1 ft knee to waist high, 0.5 ft E swell at 5.2 s. Wind up to 11 mph E. Water 79°F. Best surf window around 4:00 PM — fair (2/5) with 10 mph E wind.
Snapshot refreshed hourly — the live hourly forecast below updates in real time.
10-day forecast
Local time · updates hourly
Wave height & period
Wind
| Time | Rating | Waves | Swell | Wind | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Water temperature by month
This month: ~24.2°C (75.6°F) on average
Jan
14.7°C
58.5°F · 10.1–18.6°C
Feb
13.9°C
57°F · 11–18.2°C
Mar
15.9°C
60.6°F · 11.4–19.1°C
Apr
18.9°C
66°F · 16.4–22.5°C
May
23.3°C
73.9°F · 19.5–26.3°C
Jun
26.8°C
80.2°F · 22.4–28.4°C
Jul
28.7°C
83.7°F · 27–30.4°C
Aug
28.8°C
83.8°F · 27.1–30.2°C
Sep
27.6°C
81.7°F · 24.8–29.1°C
Oct
24.2°C
75.6°F · 21–27°C
Nov
19.6°C
67.3°F · 14.4–23.1°C
Dec
16.6°C
61.9°F · 12.4–20°C
25-year monthly averages from the NOAA OISST satellite record — typical range min–max, not a live reading.
Know before you go
Best swell
NE–SE
Best wind
SW–NW
Break type
Beach break
Best season
April–October
Safety: Friendly by surf standards, but rip currents and drop-in etiquette still apply. Shifting sandbars create moving rip currents — learn to spot them and use them to get out back.
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