Chadbourne Gulch Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Hey folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about Chadbourne Gulch. This spot is a beginner-friendly little cove, fairly consistent, and it’s facing southwest swell. The water’s sitting at 54.5°F – just about normal for this time of year, so nothing weird going on with the temp. The next couple of weeks are a mixed bag – some days you’ll get clean, small waves, but most of the time the conditions are marginal. There’s no real gap in the surf offers, but you’ll have to pick your windows carefully.

The run starts Sunday the 19th, but it’s a cross-on breeze and the swell is only 3ft from the SW with a 17-second period – that’s a long-period groundswell, which usually means better shape but longer lulls. The energy is moderate (925). Nothing special, but it’s a start.

Monday morning the 20th is the real standout. The wind goes glassy – flat calm, zero wind – and the swell drops to 2.3ft from the SW, still 16 seconds. That’s a clean, long-period groundswell, and the wave comment says “expect very good surf conditions.” The combined energy is still moderate (629). For a beginner break, this is about as good as it gets. Crowds are possible, but it’s a weekday morning, so you might have it to yourself. Grab it while you can.

Monday afternoon turns onshore, and Tuesday the 21st through Thursday the 23rd are all marginal with light cross-onshore winds and small swell around 2.3–3.6ft. The energy drops off a bit (377–626). Not worth rushing out.

Then Friday the 24th shows some promise. The morning has a tiny 2ft SW swell but with a massive 24-second period – that’s very long, and the energy jumps to 758. The wind is light cross-on, so it’s still a bit messy. But the afternoon gets better: 3ft SW, 24 seconds, onshore wind but very light, and the energy hits 1228 (strong). The wave comment says marginal, but with that period and small size, it could be fun if you time the tide. It’s a long-range groundswell, so the sets will be clean and powerful for the size.

Saturday the 25th afternoon is another small window: 3ft from the SSW, 21 seconds, light onshore wind, energy 1440 (strong). Again, the wave comment is marginal, but the swell direction is close to the optimum (WSW) and the period is long. It’s a bit bigger than Friday – still small but more consistent.

After that, things get messy. Sunday

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