Doheney Beach Surf Break

Lat Long: 33.46° N 117.68° W

Doheney Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 4 pm 14 Sep 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Doheney Beach sea temperature is
22.8°C
3.2° 

Doheney Beach surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Doheney Beach surf forecast from 15 Sep 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Thursday 17 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 16s period, SSW swell with glassy winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Monday 21 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 17s period, SW swell with 487 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 16 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 16s period with SSW swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Doheney Beach this week:

The surf forecast for Doheney Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 16) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.8m and 16s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 9s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Doheney Beach in the next 16 days are 0.9m 17s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Sep 21) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives.

Wave TypeTime (PDT) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+)11PM (Wed 16th Sep)2.5ft (0.8m) 16s
Best Surf 5AM (Thu 17th Sep)3ft (0.9m) 16s
Most Powerful 5AM (Mon 21st Sep)3ft (0.9m) 17s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Doheney Beach over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright folks, Rusty here, checkin’ in on the local stretch. Gotta be straight with you—this is a quiet stretch of forecasts, not the kind that gets the heart pumpin’, but there’s some texture to work with if you’re patient.

The first day with any surf worth getting wet for is Monday, September 14th, but it’s small and messy. The real story unfolds over the next couple weeks with small, drawn-out pulses from the southwest. There’s a whole gap of poor to marginal conditions from the get-go, so you’ll be waiting a bit for any glimmer of a rideable wave.

Alright, let’s look at the standout spot on offer: Doheney Beach. This reef break is exposed to the SSW swell direction, which matches the optimum, so that’s a tick. The early part of the week (Monday, September 14th through Wednesday, September 16th) sees tiny swell heights around 2 ft to 3 ft, but the period is long—16 to 20 seconds. That’s proper groundswell energy, which means those waves will have shape and push, even if they’re small. The combined energy gets up to 308 to 425 (moderate), so there’s some pulse behind them. However, the wind is onshore from the south for most of that early window, making for poor surf conditions. It’s rough for paddle surfing; the small but long swell with onshore wind isn’t doing Doheney any favors.

Here’s where it gets interesting—Saturday, September 19th morning to Sunday, September 20th. The swell bumps up to 3 ft to 3 ft from the SW, period still long at 18 seconds, and the combined energy climbs to 513 to 606 (moderate to strong). That’s the best energy in the whole run. Wind switches to a light cross or cross-on breeze (6 to 9 mph), which is manageable, especially the light SSW and WSW breezes. The waves will have a bit more size, nice lines from that long-period SW groundswell, and the energy (606 on Sunday morning) is the highest we’ll see. This is the pick of the window: small but cleanish, with some push. A good board and a willingness to work for it will pay off. Crowds? Doheney can get busy, so expect company, especially on a weekend.

Things fade toward the end of September. From Monday, September 21st onwards, it’s mostly poor to marginal with heights around 2 ft to 3 ft, period dropping from 16 seconds down to 12 seconds, and combined energy winding down to the low 200s (weak). The wind stays light to gentle cross-onshore, keeping it rough. The early part of the second week (Monday, Sept 21st to Wednesday, Sept 23rd) holds a glimmer with some cross-shore winds and the swell still around 3 ft, 16 sec period, with energy in the 340-450 range (moderate). That’s a possible session, but nothing to get excited about. The rest is flat or poor.

Water temp is a standout: 73°F with a 6°F anomaly—that’s much warmer than normal for this time of year at Doheney. The water’s warm, but it doesn’t make the waves better.

So, bottom line: the best chance to get wet is Saturday, September 19th through Sunday, September 20th, with clean-ish 3 ft to 3 ft SSW swell, solid period, and light wind. It’s not epic, but it’s the most energy we’ll see. For beginners, this is about the edge of okay size; it’s not too big, so if the conditions clean up, it’s doable. If you want to surf, wait for that weekend.

Stay patient, boys. Rusty out.

Short Range Forecast

Mostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Mon afternoon, min 18°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light.

Days 5-7 Weather Summary

Mostly dry. Warm (max 22°C on Sat afternoon, min 19°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light.

Mon
14
Tuesday
15
Wednesday
16
Thursday
17
Friday
18
Saturday
19
Sunday
20
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
2
1
1
2
1
1
2
2
2
3
1
1
2
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.5
SW
18
0.5
SW
17
0.5
SW
16
0.4
SSW
20
0.4
SSW
18
0.8
SSW
17
0.7
SSW
16
0.9
SSW
16
0.8
SSW
16
0.8
SSW
15
0.9
SSW
15
0.6
SW
19
0.6
SW
19
0.6
SW
19
0.8
SW
18
0.8
SW
18
0.8
SW
18
0.9
SW
18
0.9
SW
18
0.8
SW
17
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
150
147
127
127
114
386
240
402
284
246
305
303
303
234
379
375
375
455
455
358
Wind (km/h)
10
S
15
SSE
15
S
10
SSW
10
SSE
10
SSW
10
WSW
5
SW
10
WSW
15
W
5
WSW
10
SSW
15
W
5
S
10
SSW
10
WSW
5
S
15
S
10
SSW
10
SSE
Wind State
on
cross-on
on
on
on
on
cross-on
glassy
cross-on
cross
glassy
cross-on
cross
glassy
cross-on
cross
glassy
on
on
cross-on
High Tide
00:21AM1.49m
11:56AM1.99m
1:26AM1.32m
12:29PM1.90m
3:59AM1.22m
1:16PM1.80m
2:38PM1.72m
8:15AM1.44m
4:24PM1.72m
7:56AM1.50m
5:38PM1.80m
Low Tide
6:16PM0.56m
5:26AM0.96m
7:11PM0.64m
5:39AM1.11m
8:25PM0.71m
5:03AM1.22m
10:08PM0.73m
11:37PM0.66m
10:12AM1.43m
00:31AM0.57m
11:55AM1.34m
1:07AM0.48m
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
6:33
6:33
6:35
6:35
6:35
6:37
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
6:58
6:57
6:55
6:53
6:52
6:52
6:50
 mm
Temp °C
21
20
21
21
20
21
20
19
20
20
19
21
21
20
21
22
21
22
21
20
Feels °C
21
21
20
20
21
21
19
19
20
19
19
21
21
20
22
23
22
22
21
22
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for Doheney Beach:

join our community of surf reporters

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 Doheney Beach 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 Doheney Beach Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Doheney Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Doheney Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Doheney Beach 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 (Doheney Beach) 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 Doheney Beach 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.

Doheney Beach is 2 km (1 miles) from Dana Point. If you plan a vacation in Orange County, look for hotels and other accommodation in Dana Point. Dana Point has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

Nearest locationNearest