Dana Point Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Hey crew, Rusty here. Let's break down Dana Point for the next couple of weeks. It's a pretty average run, to be honest – lots of days you'll be looking at the water and scratching your head.

The water is a balmy 74°F, which is nearly 6.5°F warmer than usual for this time of year. You won't need a wetsuit, that's for sure.

We start off Monday, August 24th with a long-period groundswell. It's only 2ft from the SW with an 18-second period. That's a long period, and for a beach and reef setup like Dana, waves can jack up quick. The energy is moderate at 302. Winds are light offshore from the WSW in the morning, so it'll be clean. But the surf is poor – not doing much at all. Monday afternoon goes glassy, but it's even smaller.

Tuesday morning, August 25th, still tiny with 2ft from the SW and a 16-second period. Light offshore wind from the SW. It’s clean but not breaking with any power. Afternoon gets some bump with cross-on wind and a little more size at 2.5ft from the S, but it's messy.

Wednesday the 26th brings a bump in swell to 4.5ft from the S with a 12-second period. Energy jumps to 809. The wind is light and cross-on from the SSW though, so it's rippled and choppy. Not the cleanest.

Thursday the 27th is cross-shore wind from the S at 9 mph creating chop. The swell is 3.5-4ft from the S. Energy is moderate at 527. Nothing to write home about.

Friday the 28th improves slightly. Morning has light offshore wind from the WSW. Swell is 2.5ft from the SSW with a 16-second period, so it’s clean but small. Energy is 542. The afternoon has an even cleaner 19-second period groundswell, but only 2ft. Glassy, but you'll be waiting for waves.

Now, Saturday the 29th is the *first true standout*. The swell builds to 3.5-4ft from the SSW with a 17-second period. Energy gets strong at 828 by the afternoon. The wind goes light offshore from the WSW in the afternoon. It’ll be clean, glassy, and have some push. The morning is a little bumpy but okay. This is your best bet for the first week.

Sunday the 30th falls apart with southerly winds at 9-12 mph bringing cross-chop. The swell is a consistent 3.5ft at 14-15 seconds, energy at 670, but the wind ruins the surface.

The whole next week is a mixed bag. Swell fluctuates between 3ft and 5ft from the SSW, with periods from 10 to 19 seconds. Energy is moderate to strong, but the wind is constantly a problem – mostly cross-on or onshore. Thursday afternoon, September 3rd has a 19-second period groundswell at 3ft with light offshore wind, but it's small.

The *second true standout* is Friday afternoon, September 4th. We see a 4ft SSW swell with a 17-second period, and the energy rockets to 1103 – that's strong. Winds are light offshore from the WSW. Clean, decent size, and proper power. It's ten days away, so it's a hopeful one, but it looks like the best of the whole run.

Saturday September 5th has huge energy again (1005-1017) with 4ft SSW swell at 16 seconds, but the wind is cross-shore from the SSE at 15 mph. It'll be a bumpy, choppy mess.

The last few days, September 7th and 8th, have 4.5-5ft of S/SSW swell with 13-14-second periods and strong energy near 900-950. Winds are light offshore or light cross-shore, so you could snag some clean, solid waves, but the consistency is still marginal.

Crowds at Dana can be *sometimes* busy, but with this outlook, it shouldn't be too packed.

For my money, the best windows are Saturday afternoon, August 29th for the glass-off, and Friday afternoon, September 4th for the big energy. Everything else is a

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