Surf Forecasts:
Cape Mendocino surf forecast from 4 Jul 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 8 Jul, 5PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 17s period, SSW swell with 717 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Cape Mendocino this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Cape Mendocino in the next 16 days are 1.1m 17s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Jul 08) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.4m 8s period and expected on Friday (Jul 10) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 5PM (Wed 8th Jul) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 17s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Cape Mendocino over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Alright, Rusty here, talkin’ Cape Mendocino. Gotta be straight with you – most of this 16-day outlook is a tough slog. Strong, side winds and sloppy, short-period windswell are gonna keep things ugly. The water temp is only 49°, which is a brutal 7° colder than normal for the season – that’s a serious anomaly, so you’ll want to be wrapped up like a seal if you even think about getting wet.
The first real chance of something decent ain’t until Thursday, July 16th. Before that, it’s all poor or marginal reports. The wind is blasting from the NNW or N at 15 to 19 mph, making a mess of the surface. Sure, there’s a 7ft NW swell on Monday the 6th, but with a period of just 8 seconds and that strong cross-wind, it’s just lumpy junk – moderate energy (1266) but terrible shape. Kite surfers might get a kick out of it, but for a paddle surfer, it’s a pass.
The one standout in the whole forecast is Thursday afternoon, July 16th. The wind goes glassy – light offshore from the NW at just 3 mph. The swell is only 3ft from the WNW, but that period is 18 seconds – proper long-period groundswell. Combined energy is 743, solid moderate. Cape Mendocino is exposed to the SW, so a WNW groundswell ain’t bang on the ideal direction, but with those glassy conditions, the surf will be clean and lined up. This is the session to circle on the calendar. It’s the only real window of clean, rideable waves in the whole 16 days, so if you’re gonna go, that’s your shot.
Friday the 17th still has some 4ft WNW swell (17 seconds) but the wind goes light cross-onshore, so it won’t be as crisp. After that, it fades into smaller, weaker, and wind-affected surf again. A long quiet patch, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 16°C on Sat afternoon, min 11°C on Sun night). Mainly fresh winds. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 16°C on Thu afternoon, min 10°C on Tue night). Mainly fresh winds. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Saturday 4 | Sunday 5 | Monday 6 | Tuesday 7 | Wednesday 8 | Thursday 9 | Friday 10 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 7 | SSW 14 | NW 8 | NW 8 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | NW 9 | SSW 16 | NW 11 | SSW 20 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 301 | 149 | 322 | 311 | 399 | 207 | 560 | 330 | 553 | 485 | 643 | 651 | 491 | 717 | 539 | 545 | 441 | 372 | 377 | 367 | 275 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross |
High Tide | 3:49PM1.47m | 2:35AM1.44m | 4:21PM1.54m | 3:33AM1.30m | 4:54PM1.62m | 4:47AM1.15m | 5:32PM1.70m | 6:21AM1.05m | 6:14PM1.80m | 8:06AM1.05m | 7:02PM1.89m | 9:33AM1.14m | 7:54PM1.98m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 8:59AM-0.06m | 9:27PM0.85m | 9:35AM0.06m | 10:28PM0.74m | 10:14AM0.21m | 11:35PM0.58m | 10:58AM0.39m | 00:42AM0.38m | 11:48AM0.58m | 1:46AM0.16m | 12:47PM0.74m | 2:45AM-0.05m | 1:51PM0.86m | 3:40AM-0.25m | |||||||
 |  |  | | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | |  | | | | |
 | 5:52 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — |
 | — | 8:51 | — | — | 8:51 | — | — | 8:50 | — | — | 8:50 | — | — | 8:50 | — | — | 8:49 | — | — | 8:49 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 15 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 13 |
Feels °C | 11 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 8 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 13 | SSW 14 | NW 8 | NNW 8 | SSW 18 | NNW 8 | WNW 12 | SSW 16 | NW 11 | WNW 11 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 |
| kJ | 88 | 138 | 322 | 295 | 399 | 616 | 177 | 330 | 553 | 146 | 643 | 651 | 491 | 717 | 539 | 545 | 441 | 372 | 377 | 367 | 275 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 13 | WNW 13 | SSW 14 | NW 8 | WNW 13 | WNW 12 | NNW 8 | WNW 12 | SSW 20 | SSW 20 | SSW 14 | SW 15 | SW 15 | NW 9 | S 19 | — | S 18 | — | — | — | S 22 |
| kJ | 69 | 66 | 186 | 311 | 99 | 184 | 90 | 171 | 336 | 485 | 81 | 220 | 171 | 123 | 117 | — | 160 | — | — | — | 9 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 15 | SSW 20 | WNW 12 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 21 | SW 16 | SW 16 | S 8 | S 21 | S 11 | S 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | S 11 |
| kJ | 78 | 149 | 99 | 136 | 33 | 207 | 258 | 260 | 261 | 258 | 5 | 35 | 9 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 7 | NW 7 | N 8 | — | NW 8 | — | NW 9 | NW 8 | N 7 | NW 7 | NW 10 | NW 10 | NW 10 | NNW 5 | NNW 7 | NW 7 | NW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 |
| kJ | 301 | 405 | 302 | — | 617 | — | 560 | 473 | 54 | 173 | 437 | 315 | 384 | 80 | 259 | 503 | 616 | 717 | 732 | 700 | 545 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 80 | 51 | 40 | 51 | 151 | 45 | 152 | 437 | 51 | 151 | 437 | 51 | 149 | 436 | 54 | 334 | 436 | 42 | 316 | 54 | 59 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Humboldt County | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Cape Mendocino surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Cape Mendocino Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Cape Mendocino provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Cape Mendocino can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Cape Mendocino surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Cape Mendocino) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Cape Mendocino may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Cape Mendocino is 47 km (29 miles) from Eureka. If you plan a vacation in Humboldt County, look for hotels and other accommodation in Eureka. Eureka has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest