Californias Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – the next 16 days at Californias are looking like a rough stretch. We’re starting off small and weak, and it’s going to take a long time before anything worth paddling out for shows up.

The water temp is sitting at 84°F, which is just about normal for this time of year, so at least you won’t need a thick suit.

We kick things off on Sunday the 16th through the following Tuesday morning, August 18th. It’s all tiny ankle-snappers at 1 foot from the ENE with a period of 10 seconds. The combined swell energy is weak, barely hitting 25 (low energy). Winds are cross-offshore though, so it’s clean, but there’s just no power. The morning of the 18th has a moderate offshore breeze, which is a bonus, but with no swell to work with, it’s a flat spell.

Then we hit a real gap. From Tuesday afternoon the 18th right through to the morning of Friday the 21st, there’s effectively no rideable swell. Thursday and Friday see a tiny bump to 3 feet on the 21st morning with a short 7-second period, but the wind is cross-shore and it’s only 147 (moderate energy). It’s still poor surf conditions.

The weekend of the 22nd and 23rd? Don’t bother. We’re back to 0.7 feet from the east, with onshore or cross-onshore winds. The energy is down to single digits (6 to 16). The same dead pattern continues through to the 25th.

We finally get a little life around Thursday the 27th – a small 2 to 2 foot west swell shows up, but the period is a short 5 to 7 seconds. The wind is mostly cross or cross-off, but the combined energy is still below 50 (weak). A few clean waves for the longboard if you’re desperate, but the quality is still poor.

The biggest event in the whole outlook is Saturday the 29th of August. A solid 6 to 6 foot east swell rolls in with a very long 16-second period. The combined energy jumps dramatically to 1700 to 1890 (very strong energy). That is serious groundswell, but here’s the catch – the wind is a fresh cross-onshore breeze, blowing 19 to 22 mph, making conditions lumpy and choppy. This is a high-energy day, but messy. With that size and the onshore wind, this is really only for advanced guys on the right gear. It will probably look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The run continues into Sunday the 30th with 5 to 6 foot east swell at 14 seconds and energy still over 1100 (strong), but the wind stays onshore. The surf is there, but it’s choppy. A marginal day.

The only real stand-out window appears on Monday the 31st of August. The swell drops to a more manageable 4 feet from the ENE, still with a long 14-second period and a combined energy of 708 (strong). But the wind finally turns friendly – a cross-offshore breeze from the north at 9 to 12 mph, keeping things clean. This is your best bet. It’s not a huge day, but the conditions will be right for a clean, lined-up reef wave at Californias. The crowds are likely here (often), so get in early. This is the one.

The rest of the window after that offers nothing of note.

To sum it up: there’s a long dry gap until the end of the month. Saturday the 29th has the biggest size but messy wind. Monday the 31st is your real highlight – clean, solid groundswell, and the best chance for a proper session.

Stay patient, check the wind on the 31st, and don’t waste your time before that.

Rusty.

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