Latigo Canyon Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s keep it real. We’re looking at one break: Latigo Canyon. It’s a point, open to the SW, which is the way the swell is coming, so that’s the right direction. But the size? Tiny. We’re talking 0.4m to 0.8m all the way through the 16 days. That’s not going to get anyone stoked. The combined energy is weak, mostly two-digit numbers like 70 and 86, sometimes creeping into the low hundreds (105, 111, 127), but it’s never got any grunt. The period is long, 13 to 19 seconds, which would be great if the height was there, but it’s not. For a point break, that long period could line up clean, but there’s just no water moving.

The first few days, from Monday 3 August to Wednesday 5 August, it’s all poor surf conditions. Winds are light, mostly onshore from the S or SSE, or cross-shore in the afternoons, but the swell is just too weak. It’s a gap of nothing. The first hint of anything surfable doesn’t show until the morning of Friday 7 August, where the combined energy jumps to 303, but the swell is only 0.5m at 19 seconds. The forecast says “marginal” at best, with some clouds and light cross-onshore wind. You’d be lucky to find a knee-high wave. That afternoon gets a 1 out of 10, and it’s the same story for the next few days.

The best that’s on offer, if you can call it that, is the morning of Friday 14 August. The combined energy hits 322, the swell is 0.5m from the SSW at 18 seconds, and the wind is light and cross-onshore. It’s still tiny, but it’s the most energy we see all window. The afternoon of that day gets a 362 combined energy reading, but the wind picks up to 20 km/h from the W, which is a moderate cross-shore with chop. That’s not clean. The best quality for wind is actually the morning of Saturday 15 August, with 0.8m from the SSW at 16 seconds and light onshore wind, but the combined energy is 369. It’s the biggest swell of the stretch, but the wind is onshore, so it’s going to be messy. Still, for a surfer who’s been waiting, that morning might offer a few waist-high, close-out waves if you’re desperate.

Honestly, for the whole 16 days, none of this is worth the drive. The water temperature isn’t mentioned, so I can’t tell you if it’s warm or cold. The crowds at Latigo Canyon are “sometimes,” so you might have company, but not because it’s good. It’s just not breaking. If you’ve got a kite, you might get more out of the stronger wind afternoons, but for a paddle surfer, this is a long, flat spell. The forecast can change, and it’s never this poor forever, but right now, I’d keep the board in the car.

Rusty.

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