Gray Whale Cove Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(San Mateo, USA)

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- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
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Spot Information

Gray Whale Cove Surf Guide

Gray Whale Cove in San Mateo is an exposed beach break that has very consistent surf and works all around the year. Works best in offshore winds from the east. Tends to receive distant groundswells and the optimum swell angle is from the west. The beach break provides left and right handers. Good surf at all stages of the tide. Relatively few surfers here, even on good days. Take care of rips and sharks.

Gray Whale Cove Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach	3	very consistent	14.9°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Gray Whale Cove:

The best conditions reported for surf at Gray Whale Cove 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 Gray Whale Cove (for consistent clean waves)?

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Gray Whale Cove 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 50% of the time in January while 48% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 2% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

50%

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

blown out

48%

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 Gray Whale Cove Location Map

Interactive Gray Whale Cove 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 Gray Whale Cove is San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in USA, 14 km (9 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Gray Whale Cove is Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK), also in USA, 31 km (19 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.

Gray Whale Cove Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Wednesday, 6 May 2026, 09:03 Local Time

m, °C	Wednesday 06
ft, °F	8AM	11AM	2PM	5PM
Wave (m)	SW	SW	SW	SW
Period (s)	16	15	15	15
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- on	on	on	cross- on

What does Gray Whale Cove look like?

Latest photos from Gray Whale Cove. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Tides at Gray Whale Cove

Current tide and informaton

For Pacifica, 6 km from Gray Whale Cove.

Next High Water: 04:22pm | 1.84m

Next Low Water: 08:33pm | 1.59m

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

Gray Whale Cove Sea Temperature

The water temperature (14.9 °C) at Gray Whale Cove 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 (12.0 °C) will make the air and water feel about the same temperature.

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit, neoprene gloves and boots.