Surf Forecasts:
Cottons Point surf forecast from 27 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 28 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 18s period, SSW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 29 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 17s period, SSW swell with 932 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 27 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 10s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Cottons Point this week:
The surf forecast for Cottons Point over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 27) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 14s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Cottons Point in the next 16 days are 1.3m 17s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 29) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Thu 27th Aug) | 3ft (0.9m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Fri 28th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 18s |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Sat 29th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.3m) 17s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Cottons Point over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, it's your old mate Rusty here. Let's have a look at what Cottons Point has got cooking for us over the next couple of weeks.
Alright, look, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it. The whole 16-day window at Cottons Point is a real struggle, a proper flat spell interrupted by some messy, marginal dribble. The water is a balmy 73°, which feels way warmer than usual for this time of year—that's a big anomaly of 5° warmer, so you won't need the thickest wettie, but the surf quality is the real letdown.
Kicking off on the morning of Thursday the 27th of August, we're looking at a tiny 4ft south swell with a 12-second period. The energy is moderate at best, and that light cross-on breeze from the SSW is gonna leave it a bit lumpy. It's a scratchy affair.
Friday the 28th drops even smaller, down to 3ft from the SSW, but the period jumps to a very long 17 seconds. That groundswell energy is still moderate, but the cross-on wind won't do it any favours for shape. Saturday the 29th shows a little more size, back to 4ft to 4ft from the SSW, but the wind is on it, and it’s described as marginal. The energy ticks up, but for a reef and point like this, we need cleaner conditions.
The outlook drags on through the end of August and the first few days of September with the same story: small SSW swells between 2ft and 4ft, nearly always with some cross-on wind chopping it up. On Monday the 7th of September, the wind finally swings offshore from the NE, but by then the swell is a tiny 3ft, so it’s clean but barely a ripple.
There’s a bit of a spike on Thursday the 3rd of September, the swell bumps up to 6ft from the SW with very strong wave energy, but that cross-on wind is still there, and the whole thing is rated as marginal. For a spot that is a reef and point, that cross-on wind just ruins the potential for a proper wall.
Honestly, there is no standout session in this whole 16-day run. The conditions are constantly compromised, the swell is rarely the right size, and the wind never truly cleans up. This is a real blank run for the area. We’ll have to wait for the charts to change.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Thu afternoon, min 22°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Warm (max 25°C on Sun morning, min 18°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | |||||||||||||||
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) | S 12 | S 11 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SW 14 | SSW 17 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | S 13 | S 12 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 13 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 333 | 231 | 270 | 351 | 147 | 932 | 587 | 733 | 706 | 537 | 405 | 321 | 280 | 295 | 225 | 149 | 174 | 304 | 349 | 355 | 793 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | glassy | on | on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | cross | on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | glassy |
High Tide | 9:38AM1.37m | 9:09PM1.77m | 10:01AM1.45m | 9:43PM1.71m | 10:26AM1.52m | 10:18PM1.61m | 10:52AM1.58m | 10:57PM1.45m | 11:20AM1.62m | 11:42PM1.26m | 11:53AM1.63m | 00:41AM1.06m | 12:34PM1.62m | 2:20AM0.88m | |||||||
Low Tide | 3:09PM0.45m | 3:55AM-0.04m | 3:45PM0.38m | 4:19AM0.02m | 4:23PM0.33m | 4:43AM0.13m | 5:04PM0.29m | 5:06AM0.26m | 5:52PM0.28m | 5:29AM0.41m | 6:51PM0.30m | 5:52AM0.58m | 8:11PM0.32m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | |  | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | | |
 | 6:20 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — |
 | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:21 | — | — | 7:19 | — | — | 7:17 | — | — | 7:16 | — | — | 7:15 | — | — | 7:14 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 28 | 25 | 28 | 28 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 23 | 25 | 24 | 21 | 24 | 24 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 21 | 23 | 25 | 23 |
Feels °C | 30 | 30 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 21 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 21 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | SSW 17 | S 9 | SSW 17 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | W 7 | S 13 | S 12 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 13 |
| kJ | 333 | 231 | 154 | 351 | 54 | 932 | 587 | 733 | 706 | 537 | 405 | 107 | 280 | 295 | 225 | 149 | 174 | 304 | 349 | 355 | 793 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 14 | SW 14 | SSW 18 | S 9 | SW 14 | W 7 | W 7 | W 7 | W 8 | W 8 | W 7 | SSW 14 | W 7 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | W 5 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SSW 16 | S 9 |
| kJ | 169 | 132 | 270 | 79 | 147 | 32 | 62 | 62 | 110 | 146 | 82 | 321 | 56 | 158 | 118 | 114 | 8 | 111 | 132 | 175 | 6 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 12 | SW 18 | SW 14 | W 7 | W 8 | S 8 | SSW 8 | S 8 | S 8 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | S 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 19 | W 5 | SW 18 | SW 18 | W 5 | W 11 | W 10 | S 15 |
| kJ | 72 | 81 | 116 | 26 | 49 | 33 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 34 | 51 | 215 | 257 | 35 | 13 | 50 | 49 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 17 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | W 6 | — | W 5 | — | — | W 4 | W 3 | WNW 4 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 37 | — | 8 | — | — | 4 | 2 | 5 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 82 | 87 | 0 | 82 | 150 | 21 | 87 | 87 | 28 | 87 | 87 | 4 | 87 | 87 | 0 | 2 | 87 | 11 | 87 | 87 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Orange 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 Cottons Point 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 Cottons Point Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Cottons Point provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Cottons Point can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Cottons Point 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 (Cottons Point) 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 Cottons Point 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.
Cottons Point is 5 km (3 miles) from San Clemente. If you plan a vacation in Orange County, look for hotels and other accommodation in San Clemente. San Clemente has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest