La Jolla Cove Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the menu for La Jolla Cove over the next couple of weeks.

We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but there’s a small window of clean, surfable waves coming through Thursday and Friday. After that, the quality drops off pretty hard, and we’re looking at a long stretch of mostly marginal or poor conditions. There’s a glimmer of something better way out in the second week, but it’s a long wait and far from a sure thing.

Thursday, September 10th is our best bet right now. We’ve got a clean 3 ft swell rolling in from the SW with a nice long 16-second period – that’s proper groundswell moving through. The wind is a gentle cross-off breeze from the SSW at 9 mph, keeping the surface clean and lined up. At La Jolla Cove, this long-period energy will wrap beautifully around the reef and point, giving us some nice, shapely waves. Combined swell energy is sitting at a solid moderate 519. The water is 72°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year – a little gift from the ocean. This looks like the standout session of the whole forecast, so if you can get out Thursday, do it. It can get a bit busy though, crowds are a possibility here.

Friday, September 11th keeps the fun going. The morning sees a similar 3 ft SW swell (15-second period, combined energy 538) with a cross-off breeze, so it will still be clean. The afternoon drops slightly to 3 ft (15-second period, energy 412), but still looks good. Friday is a solid second option.

Then things go south. Saturday, September 12th the swell drops to 3 ft, period gets short and the wind turns cross-shore and then onshore. By Saturday afternoon, the swell is weak, short period, and choppy. From Sunday the 13th right through to around the 19th, we’ve got a real dry spell. The combined energy dips low, often into the double digits or low hundreds, with persistent cross-onshore to onshore winds making for messy, blown-out conditions. There are a few mornings with clean-ish cross-off wind, but the wave heights are small and the quality just isn’t there. For the most part, this stretch is a write-off for a decent paddle.

The wait drags on, but around Sunday, September 20th, we start to see a little pulse. Swell bumps up to 3 ft from the SW with a long 18-second period, and the combined energy climbs back up to 662. The wind is cross-shore but light on the Sunday, and it’s listed as marginal. It’s not a standout, but it’s the first sign of life after a long break. Monday the 21st sees the swell build a touch more to 4 ft (SW, 17-second period, combined energy up to 714), but the onshore wind is back, which ruins the party. It continues onshore from the NW through the rest of the week.

Looking way out to Thursday, September 24th and Friday, September 25th, there’s more solid energy showing on the charts – 3 ft to 3 ft SW swells, some with 14 to 24-second periods – but the wind is consistently onshore. The last couple of weeks of the forecast look like one long struggle with the onshore breeze, making it a tough call for anything good.

So, to wrap it up: Thursday the 10th is your day. Get on it. After that, the clean windows are narrow and the poor runs are long. A classic Southern California late-summer forecast: wait for the next pulse and hope the wind plays ball.

Rusty.

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