Surf Forecasts:
Donuts surf forecast from 4 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 4 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 17s period, SW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Monday 7 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 6.5ft (2.0m), 14s period, SSW swell with 1,495 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 4 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 17s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Donuts this week:
The surf forecast for Donuts over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 04) at 8AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.0m and 17s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Donuts in the next 16 days are 2.0m 14s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Sep 07) at 8AM. 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+) | 8AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 17s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 17s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Mon 7th Sep) | 6.5ft (2.0m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Donuts over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the menu for the next couple of weeks.
To be straight with you, the forecast is pretty grim. The only break on the cards is Donuts, a sheltered reef setup, but it’s a struggle. For the entire 16-day window, we’re looking at a long run of poor surf conditions. There’s a real gap of clean, rideable waves here for days on end.
Right now, starting Friday the 4th, we’ve got a 3ft to 4ft swell from the SW, with a long period of 16 to 17 seconds. That’s some proper groundswell energy, with the combined energy hitting 624 to 838 (moderate), but the wind is a killer. It’s blowing onshore or cross-onshore, making a mess of things. The report says "poor surf conditions" and the waves are just choppy and uninviting. It’s not worth paddling out.
Saturday the 5th and Sunday the 6th see the swell picking up, hitting 7ft on Sunday from the SSW, with a period of 14 seconds. The combined energy jumps right up to 1422 (strong energy). That’s a fair bit of water moving, but the wind is howling from the N at 16 mph, creating a cross-chop. It’s too big for beginners, and with that wind, it’s just a messy, blown-out wall. A beach break setup might be interesting for kite surfing, but for a paddle surfer at Donuts, it’s a hard pass.
The rest of the first week and into the second week is more of the same. The swell drops back to 3ft to 4ft, with periods between 10 and 16 seconds. The combined energy falls to between 416 and 640 (weak to moderate). The wind is stubbornly cross-onshore from the NW or WNW. It’s a long stretch of washed-out, small surf. The water temperature is about average for this time of year, nothing wild to report.
As we head into the third week, around the 17th of September, the swell bottoms out to 1ft, with a very long period of 22 seconds. The energy is weak (331). You’d be waiting forever for a set, and even then, it’d be tiny. The wind is light from the W, which is offshore, but with such a small, long-period swell on a reef, it’s not going to translate into anything worth chasing.
Honestly, there’s no standout session here. The wind is the enemy, and the timing is just off. Keep the board in the car and wait for a better forecast.
Rusty
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Sun afternoon, min 19°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 24°C on Mon morning, min 23°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||
Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | S 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SW 17 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 588 | 530 | 667 | 539 | 483 | 521 | 1106 | 1407 | 1387 | 1376 | 1322 | 1204 | 1235 | 921 | 851 | 563 | 368 | 284 | 342 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 5:41AM0.88m | 3:12PM1.55m | 7:04AM1.01m | 4:48PM1.62m | 7:30AM1.14m | 6:02PM1.74m | 7:57AM1.26m | 7:00PM1.85m | 8:25AM1.38m | 7:49PM1.91m | 8:53AM1.49m | 8:34PM1.91m | |||||||
Low Tide | 10:06PM0.27m | 6:44AM0.88m | 11:43PM0.14m | 10:16AM0.94m | 00:47AM-0.01m | 12:00PM0.84m | 1:34AM-0.13m | 1:03PM0.67m | 2:13AM-0.19m | 1:52PM0.49m | 2:48AM-0.20m | 2:37PM0.34m | 3:20AM-0.15m | ||||||
 |  | | | |  |  |  | |  | | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — |
 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:07 | — | — | 7:07 | — | — | 7:06 | — | — | 7:04 | — | — | 7:02 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 19 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 27 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 23 |
Feels °C | 18 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 20 | 25 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 24 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | S 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SW 10 |
| kJ | 588 | 530 | 667 | 539 | 483 | 521 | 1106 | 1407 | 1387 | 1376 | 1322 | 1204 | 1235 | 921 | 851 | 563 | 368 | 284 | 188 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 5 | W 6 | S 14 | S 13 | S 13 | SW 16 | W 10 | SW 20 | WNW 12 | W 12 | W 11 | W 11 | — | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 17 |
| kJ | 29 | 22 | 132 | 209 | 350 | 416 | 55 | 15 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 2 | — | 49 | 80 | 163 | 211 | 267 | 342 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 11 | NW 9 | — | — | — | — | NW 11 | — | SW 21 | W 10 | W 12 | WNW 5 | SSW 12 | WNW 4 |
| kJ | 96 | 72 | 24 | 58 | 61 | 63 | 3 | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | 17 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 15 | 5 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | W 6 | — | — | — | W 10 | — | W 11 | WNW 4 | WNW 6 | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 5 | — |
| kJ | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | 53 | — | 59 | 10 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 21 | — | 13 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Best forecast wave conditions in San Diego County | |||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Donuts 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 Donuts Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Donuts provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Donuts can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Donuts 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 (Donuts) 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 Donuts 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.
Donuts is 6 km (4 miles) from the city of Coronado. If you plan a vacation in San Diego County, look for hotels and other accommodation in Coronado. Coronado has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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