Cortez Bank Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(San Diego County, USA)

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

Cortez Bank Surf Guide

Cortez Bank in San Diego County is an exposed reef break that has reasonably consistent surf. Offshore winds are from the east. The ideal swell direction from the west. Unlikely to be too crowded, even when the surf is up. Beware of rocks and sharks.

Cortez Bank Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Reef	5	fairly consistent	16.8°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Cortez Bank:

The best conditions reported for surf at Cortez Bank occur when a West swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the East.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

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

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Cortez Bank 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 34% of the time in January while 65% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 1% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

34%

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

blown out

65%

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 Cortez Bank Location Map

Interactive Cortez Bank 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 Cortez Bank is North Island Nas (San Diego) Airport (NZY) in USA, 181 km (112 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Cortez Bank is Long Beach Airport (LGB), also in USA, 182 km (113 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.

Cortez Bank Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Wednesday, 6 May 2026, 08:30 Local Time

m, °C	Wednesday 06
ft, °F	8AM	11AM	2PM	5PM
Wave (m)	SW	SW	WNW	WNW
Period (s)	16	16	12	12
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- on	cross- on	cross- on	cross- on

Tides at Cortez Bank

Current tide and informaton

For Cortez Bank, 0 km from Cortez Bank.

Next High Water: 12:03am | 1.75m

Next Low Water: 08:37am | 0.51m

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

Cortez Bank Sea Temperature

The water temperature (16.8 °C) at Cortez Bank 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.