Capitola Jetty Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Santa Cruz, USA)

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Capitola Jetty Surf Guide

Capitola Jetty in Santa Cruz is a sheltered reef break that has inconsistent surf with no particular seasonal pattern. Offshore winds are from the north with some shelter here from northwest winds. Most of the surf here comes from groundswells and the best swell direction is from the south southwest. Even when there are waves, it's not likley to be crowded. Beware of - Rips / undertow - Rocks - Pollution.

Capitola Jetty Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Reef	2	inconsistent	14.5°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Capitola Jetty:

The best conditions reported for surf at Capitola Jetty occur when a South-southwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the North.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

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

juneBest Season: summer

The best time of year for surfing Capitola Jetty with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Summer and most often the month of June. Clean surfable waves are typically found 3% of the time in June while 1% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 96% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

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

blown out

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

too small

96%

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

Explore Capitola Jetty Location Map

Interactive Capitola Jetty 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 closest passenger airport to Capitola Jetty is Norman Y Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC) in USA, 44 km (27 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Capitola Jetty is Moffett Federal Afld (Mountain View) Airport (NUQ), also in USA, 50 km (31 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.

Capitola Jetty Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 07:06 Local Time

m, °C	Tuesday 05
ft, °F	8AM	11AM	2PM	5PM
Wave (m)	SSW	SSW	SSW	SSW
Period (s)	17	14	15	15
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	glass	glass	cross	cross- off

What does Capitola Jetty look like?

Latest photos from Capitola Jetty. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: James Credit: John Credit: John Credit: John Credit: Dan Carley

Tides at Capitola Jetty

Current tide and informaton

For Live Oak, 3 km from Capitola Jetty.

Next High Water: 03:30pm | 1.49m

Next Low Water: 08:02am | 0.36m

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

Capitola Jetty Sea Temperature

The water temperature (14.5 °C) at Capitola Jetty is quite cool. If the sun does come out as forecast, it should feel warm enough to surf in a good sealed spring wetsuit. Some surfers would prefer to wear gloves and boots too. Effective windchill factor of (14.0 °C) will make the air and water feel about the same temperature.

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

Current Temp*: 14.5°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

View Sea Temp Map

Swell History at Capitola Jetty

Surf stats for Capitola Jetty, see the swell variation by month or season on the history page here.

Average Swell

View Swell Statistics

Wind History at Capitola Jetty

Wind stats for Capitola Jetty, see the variation in direction and stength by month or season on the history page here.

Average Wind

View Wind Statistics

Capitola Jetty Reviews:

Interactive Porthcawl Point location map. View nearby buoy information, live wind conditions and surrounding roads, paths and locations to help find new breaks. Click the buoys or wind icon to view more information.

Ratings

Based on 3 votes.

Overall:2.0
Quality on a good day:3.3
Consistency of Surf:3.7
Difficulty Level:2.0
Wind and Kite Surfing:2.0
Crowds:2.7
...

See all 18 ratings

Review

Impartial reviews submitted by Surf-Forecast users.

DC from United States

“This a super fun longboard wave that is almost always killed by the many who do not follow the simple rules of surfing:
One surfer per wave.
Surfer closest to the shoulder has right of way!
Do not drop in.
Do not snake waves (paddle around someone to take their position).
Take a wave - Give a wave.
Do not paddle out into the break.
Do not call out Party Wave.
Never surf beyond your capabilities.”

Other Nearby Breaks Closest To:

Discover surf breaks near Capitola Jetty. Click below to view there surf guides.