Big River Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Mendocino County, USA)

Forecast
- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
Maps
Live
Weather State
Spot Information

Big River Surf Guide

Big River in Mendocino County is a fairly exposed river break that has consistent surf Works best in offshore winds from the northeast with some shelter here from northwest winds. Tends to receive distant groundswells and the best swell direction is from the west. The river break provides left and right handers. It very rarely gets crowded here. Beware of - Rips / undertow - Sharks.

Big River Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
River	2	consistent	11.8°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Big River:

The best conditions reported for surf at Big River occur when a West swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Northeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Big River (for consistent clean waves)?

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Big River with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of January. Clean surfable waves are typically found 40% of the time in January while 55% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 5% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

40%

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

55%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Big River Location Map

Interactive Big River surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The nearest passenger airport to Big River is Chico Muni Airport (CIC) in USA, which is 175 km (109 miles) away (directly). The second closest airport to Big River is Travis Afb (Fairfield) Airport (SUU), also in USA, 199 km (124 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Big River Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 07:56 Local Time

m, °C	Tuesday 05
ft, °F	8AM	11AM	2PM	5PM
Wave (m)	WNW	WNW	WNW	WNW
Period (s)	12	12	12	12
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	glass	cross	cross	cross

What does Big River look like?

Latest photos from Big River. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: Tracy Middleton

Tides at Big River

Current tide and informaton

For Mendocino, Mendocino Bay, California, 0 km from Big River.

Next High Water: 03:46pm | 1.11m

Next Low Water: 08:28am | -0.14m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Big River Sea Temperature

The water temperature (11.8 °C) at Big River is quite cold. If the sun shines as forecast, it should feel warm enough to get away with a good sealed spring wetsuit but you won't overheat in a winter wetsuit, gloves boots and a hood. Effective windchill factor of (12.0 °C).

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit, a neoprene hood, gloves and boots.