Sunrise and first light times for planning your dawn patrol session.
First light in Virginia Beach means glass, empty peaks, and the best conditions of the day before thermal onshores build. These 12 spots are worth the 5am alarm.
Sunrise
7:11 AM
First Light: 6:41 AM
Day length: 11h 19m
-2 min vs yesterday
Sunrise
7:11 AM
First light: 6:41 AM
Sunset
6:30 PM
Last light: 7:00 PM
Data from 1st Street Jetty (Virginia Beach) · Updated daily
7-Day Sun Schedule
7-day sun schedule showing sunrise, sunset, and day length
First Street is Virginia Beach's most established surf zone. The north jetty at Rudee Inlet traps sand and often produces a rideable right when nearby open beach is flat, with more push on E to SE tropical or nor'easter swell.
Early access
Use the designated surf zone north of Rudee Inlet. Stay away from the rocks and inlet mouth, and follow posted contest or lifeguard boundaries.
Parking
Use legal Oceanfront parking or city lots and arrive early. Events and summer weekends can fill the area before dawn.
42nd–46th Street North End is an Atlantic sandbar surf zone at Virginia Beach in Virginia Beach. The representative coordinate marks nearshore water, not a fixed takeoff; sandbars, currents, and access conditions can change.
Early access
Use the official public access serving this shoreline and obey closures, dune protections, and seasonal surf-zone rules.
Parking
Use signed public access and legal parking; verify posted restrictions before leaving the vehicle.
71st Street North End is an Atlantic sandbar surf zone at Virginia Beach in Virginia Beach. The representative coordinate marks nearshore water, not a fixed takeoff; sandbars, currents, and access conditions can change.
Early access
Use the official public access serving this shoreline and obey closures, dune protections, and seasonal surf-zone rules.
Parking
Use signed public access and legal parking; verify posted restrictions before leaving the vehicle.
The public Camp Pendleton surfing area sits beside the Virginia Army National Guard installation. Its outside sandbar can handle more E, SE, and S energy than First Street and may produce hollow sections when tide, period, and offshore wind align.
Early access
Follow the signed public beach corridor and boundary fencing. Training activity does not authorize entry onto base property.
Parking
Use the public surfing-area lot and verify current city access. Do not enter the military installation or use restricted roads.
South Croatan is an open beach break beside Camp Pendleton. It favors SE tropical swell and offers more room than the jetty peak, with shifting outside bars that can produce left and right walls.
Early access
Enter from the public Croatan facility and stay between posted boundaries. Do not cross military fences or drift into restricted training areas.
Parking
Use the municipal lot at the end of Vanderbilt Avenue or legal neighborhood parking. Observe fees, hours, and residential signs.
Croatan Jetty is the north end of Croatan Beach, where a wooden groin and Rudee Inlet's south jetty can bend swell into a predominantly left wedge. It is fickle but becomes punchier around high tide during nor'easters.
Early access
Walk north from the public Croatan entrance. Stay clear of the jetty, groin, and inlet current.
Parking
Use the Croatan municipal lot or legal neighborhood parking. Fees and seasonal restrictions apply; never block residential access.
Little Island is the southern public anchor of Sandbridge. The fishing pier influences nearby sandbars, and the city maintains a surfing beach north of the structure with room for small-wave progression and stronger storm-swell peaks.
Early access
Use the signed surfing beach north of the pier and remain outside pier setbacks and fishing lines. Do not enter Back Bay refuge closures farther south.
Parking
Use Little Island Park at 3820 Sandpiper Road. Parking fees and facility hours vary by season.
North End covers the residential oceanfront north of the resort district. Its open sandbars are less structure-dependent than the city's jetty breaks and can provide clean longboard peaks on small swell or faster walls when tropical and winter energy arrives.
Early access
Use signed public walkovers between 42nd Street and Fort Story. The coordinate is Surfline's representative North End forecast point, not a single takeoff.
Parking
Use legal street parking and observe posted resident restrictions. Access and parking vary block by block; never block driveways or dune paths.
S-Turn is a named Sandbridge beach-break zone between the market area and Little Island. It shares the peninsula's open Atlantic exposure but has no fixed structure, so quality depends heavily on the current bank.
Early access
The forecast coordinate identifies the surf zone, not a parking location. Confirm the nearest legal public access before arrival.
Parking
Use only legal public parking and signed beach access. Do not use private driveways or rental-home walkovers.
Sandbridge is a more open and less urban Atlantic beach south of the resort district. Shifting sandbars create left and right peaks, with the strongest opportunities during tropical swell and nor'easters.
Early access
Beach access is directly across from the public facility. Stay on walkovers and protect the dunes.
Parking
Use the city Sandbridge Beach Facility at 2549 Sandfiddler Road. Parking fees apply seasonally and lots fill on summer weekends.
The 15th Street fishing pier can organize a right on its south side during sizable nor'easters. The north-side shorebreak, known locally as The Box, can form fast small barrels when the sand is right and south swell reaches the resort beach.
Early access
Enter from signed public beach access and stay outside the legal setback from the pier. Daytime summer surfing restrictions can make this primarily a cold-season or off-hours break.
Parking
Use city garages, lots, or legal metered parking. Summer demand is high and the pier area is heavily enforced.
Dawn patrol in Virginia Beach typically starts at first light, around 30 minutes before sunrise. This gives you the glassiest conditions before onshore winds develop.
Early morning offers glassy conditions, fewer crowds, and calmer winds. Water temperature is also warmer relative to air temperature at sunrise.
Check it, surf it, log it
Check the forecast, surf the session, log what happened — and build the record you'll compare every next call against.
