Surf Forecasts:
La Jolla Cove surf forecast from 4 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 10 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 17s period, SW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 5 Sep, 5PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 16s period, SW swell with 636 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 10 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 17s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for La Jolla Cove this week:
The surf forecast for La Jolla Cove over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 10) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 17s period with a secondary swell of 1.1m and 10s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at La Jolla Cove in the next 16 days are 1.1m 16s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Sep 05) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.1m 14s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 06) at 11AM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Thu 10th Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 17s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Thu 10th Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 17s |
| Most Powerful | 5PM (Sat 5th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 16s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for La Jolla Cove over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Gotta level with you – the 16-day forecast for La Jolla Cove is looking flat, messy, and mostly not worth paddling out. We’ve got a big gap of junk surf from the start. Friday the 4th through Sunday the 6th is all tiny 0.7 ft to 2 ft slop with cross-onshore breezes, short 5- to 6-second intervals, and combined energy barely hitting 86 – just wind chop. Not happening.
Monday the 7th through Wednesday the 9th stays poor – onshore winds, tiny waves, energy under 100. Leave the board on the rack.
Best window pops up Thursday the 10th: a 3 ft SW groundswell with a 17-second period, energy at 670 (moderate), and light west winds. It’ll be bumpy cross-onshore, but this is the biggest, juiciest pulse of the whole 16 days. Guidance says marginal tide conditions, so don’t expect perfection, but if you’ve got to wet a line, this is your window.
After that, it dries up again. Friday the 11th has 4 ft swell but onshore NW winds at 12 mph make it unruly. Saturday the 12th drops to 4 ft but period shrinks to 6-7 seconds – weak and windblown.
There’s a little pulse Monday the 14th: 4 ft to 5 ft WNW groundswell, period 7-8 seconds, energy 400-ish. Still cross-onshore. Tuesday the 15th has a 2 ft SW groundswell at 16 seconds and light winds, maybe glassy morning – but it’s tiny.
The water is a balmy 73°, about 5° warmer than normal for early September, so at least you’ll swim warm.
Honestly, Thursday the 10th is your only real bite – a chest-high window with decent energy and light breeze. Crowds at the Cove are “sometimes” anyway, but with this outlook you won’t have company. It’s a long blank run for the area, nothing unusual for early autumn. Hang tight, forecasts shift.
Rusty
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 26°C on Sun morning, min 19°C on Fri morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 25°C on Mon morning, min 23°C on Mon morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | |||||||||||||||
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) | WNW 6 | W 5 | SW 11 | SW 12 | SW 16 | W 10 | W 10 | SW 11 | WSW 11 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | SW 18 | SW 18 | WNW 4 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 5 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 24 | 16 | 56 | 86 | 636 | 55 | 28 | 31 | 22 | 24 | 29 | 50 | 152 | 18 | 214 | 211 | 12 | 419 | 553 | 496 | 483 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | on | on | on | on | on | on | on | on | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | on | on |
High Tide | 3:09PM1.63m | 7:22AM1.02m | 4:44PM1.68m | 7:45AM1.14m | 6:01PM1.78m | 8:11AM1.26m | 7:02PM1.88m | 8:37AM1.37m | 7:53PM1.94m | 9:05AM1.48m | 8:38PM1.92m | 9:32AM1.58m | 9:21PM1.84m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 11:38PM0.12m | 9:52AM0.98m | 00:42AM-0.03m | 11:47AM0.90m | 1:30AM-0.14m | 12:54PM0.73m | 2:10AM-0.20m | 1:46PM0.55m | 2:45AM-0.20m | 2:32PM0.40m | 3:17AM-0.14m | 3:15PM0.27m | 3:47AM-0.04m | ||||||||
 | |  |  |  |  | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:24 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — |
 | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:08 | — | — | 7:07 | — | — | 7:06 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:02 | — | — | 7:01 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 21 | 21 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 23 |
Feels °C | 21 | 20 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSE 13 | S 14 | S 13 | S 14 | S 14 | S 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 10 | SW 10 | SW 17 | SW 16 | WSW 9 |
| kJ | 580 | 717 | 444 | 725 | 1016 | 1324 | 1682 | 961 | 1512 | 1628 | 1558 | 1255 | 953 | 965 | 703 | 466 | 367 | 217 | 553 | 496 | 305 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 14 | SSE 14 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 10 | SW 20 | SSW 16 | WSW 11 | WSW 10 | W 11 | WNW 4 | SW 18 | SW 22 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 9 | SW 9 | SW 16 |
| kJ | 204 | 351 | 666 | 612 | 636 | 10 | 15 | 435 | 22 | 10 | 2 | 11 | 152 | 18 | 214 | 211 | 281 | 419 | 117 | 141 | 483 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 6 | W 5 | SW 11 | SW 12 | WSW 11 | W 13 | — | SW 11 | WNW 11 | W 13 | SW 9 | SW 18 | SW 21 | W 10 | W 12 | SSW 20 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 |
| kJ | 24 | 14 | 56 | 86 | 66 | 14 | — | 31 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 50 | 18 | 2 | 3 | 149 | 31 | 47 | 72 | 44 | 38 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | WNW 5 | — | — | — | W 10 | W 10 | NW 4 | NW 4 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | — | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | 16 | — | — | — | 55 | 28 | 16 | 18 | 24 | 29 | — | 8 | 11 | 15 | 14 | 12 | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 21 | 20 | 2 | 20 | 20 | 4 | 14 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 4 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 0 | 20 | 21 | 4 |
Best forecast wave conditions in San Diego County | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the La Jolla Cove Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for La Jolla Cove provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at La Jolla Cove can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our La Jolla Cove 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 (La Jolla Cove) 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 La Jolla Cove 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.
La Jolla Cove is 10 km (6 miles) from San Diego. If you plan a vacation in San Diego County, look for hotels and other accommodation in San Diego. San Diego has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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