- 01 10.0 Hilton Head Island, SCA perfect beach day 81° air 79° water 1.1 ft surf 8 mph 0% rain nothing against it
- 02 9.9 30A, FLA perfect beach day 85° air 85° water 0.8 ft surf 8 mph 4% rain nothing against it
- 03 9.9 Destin, FLA perfect beach day 84° air 85° water 0.6 ft surf 8 mph 4% rain nothing against it
- 04 9.9 Gulf Shores & Orange Beach, ALA perfect beach day 85° air 85° water 0.6 ft surf 8 mph 4% rain nothing against it
- 05 9.9 Myrtle Beach, SCA perfect beach day 80° air 77° water 0.9 ft surf 10 mph 0% rain breezy (10 mph)
- 06 8.2 Outer Banks, NCA good beach day 75° air 72° water 2.0 ft surf 12 mph 3% rain cool air (75F high), brisk water (72F), breezy (12 mph)
- 07 6.7 Ocean City, MDFair: pick your hours 67° air 67° water 2.2 ft surf 11 mph 6% rain cool air (67F high), brisk water (67F), breezy (11 mph), some surf (2.2 ft)
- 08 6.3 Rehoboth & Bethany, DEFair: pick your hours 65° air 66° water 2.4 ft surf 11 mph 13% rain cool air (65F high), brisk water (66F), breezy (11 mph), some surf (2.4 ft)
- 09 3.3 Nantucket, MANot much of a beach day 70° air 62° water 5.0 ft surf 15 mph 36% rain cool air (70F high), cold water (62F), breezy (15 mph), rough surf (5.0 ft)
- 10 2.5 Martha's Vineyard, MANot much of a beach day 68° air 62° water 3.2 ft surf 19 mph 44% rain cool air (68F high), cold water (62F), windy (19 mph gusts), 44% chance of rain, some surf (3.2 ft)
Ten points, and the day loses them honestly.
Every shore starts at 10. Cool air below 78°F costs half a point per four degrees (up to three); above 92°F the same rule applies in the other direction (up to two). Water under 72°F costs a point, under 65°F two. Wind over 10 mph costs up to a point and a half, over 18 mph two and a half. The chance of rain costs up to three points in proportion. Surf over two feet costs half a point, over four feet a point and a half. The result is rounded to a tenth and capped between 0 and 10.
Forecast, UV, sunrise and sunset come from Open-Meteo's daily model for a point on the beach itself; wave height and sea-surface temperature from Open-Meteo's marine model for the same point; tide times and heights from the nearest open-coast NOAA CO-OPS prediction station. Everything refreshes with the morning rebuild. It is a guide to the day, not a promise, and it says nothing about crowds, jellyfish, or the line at the coffee place.