Leffingwell Landing Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s switch over to the old system for my mates who think in feet and miles.

Right now, we’re in a bit of a rough patch. The surf over the next several days is not where we want it to be. There’s a small window of cleaner waves early Friday morning (July 17th) with a 6ft NW swell, but the wind is onshore and the period is a short 8 seconds – that’s windswell, not the good stuff. Plus, the water is sitting at 58°F, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year. The combined energy is a moderate 991, so it’s not a total washout, but the wave report says it’s marginal. By Friday afternoon, conditions drop off with poor surf.

We go through a long dry spell from Friday afternoon all the way through most of the week. Saturday (July 18th) and Sunday (July 19th) have small knee-high swell from the SW with these very long 16 to 18-second periods – that’s groundswell, which would be great at a reef like this if the wind were right. But the onshore breeze is keeping things bumpy. The energy readings are moderate (624 to 672), but the quality just isn’t there.

Then on Tuesday morning, July 21st, things finally change. We’ve got a light swell of 4ft from the SSW with a 14-second period, but the real hero here is the wind. It’s coming from the SSE at only 3 mph, which is a light cross-offshore breeze. That’s your cleanest surf of the week. The energy is moderate (535), and the wave report actually says “expect very good surf conditions.” That’s a standout morning.

Tuesday afternoon, the swell bumps up to 6ft from the SSW with a 11-second period, but the wind swings to a straight cross-shore, so it’s not as clean. Still, that’s a decent amount of power for a reef break, but the crowd profile says “sometimes,” so you might have company.

After that, from Wednesday (July 22nd) onward, it’s a real mixed bag. The swell sticks around in the 3ft to 6ft range, mostly from the SSW or SW, but the wind is almost always onshore or cross-onshore, and the energy stays moderate (345 to 946). There are a couple of mornings like Monday, July 27th, with a 4ft SSW swell and gentle cross-onshore wind that might be worth a look, but nothing that’s going to blow you away.

Further out, around Thursday, July 30th and Friday, July 31st, we see a pulse of WNW swell hitting 6ft to 8ft, but the periods are short (8 to 10 seconds) and the wind remains cross-onshore. That’s 8ft – that’s big for Leffingwell, and at that size with short-period windswell, it’s going to be a messy, powerful beast. Not one for the faint-hearted. The energy jumps up to 1158 and even 1715, which is moderate-to-strong, but the quality just isn’t there with the wind.

Honestly, if I had to pick the only real standout in this whole 16-day stretch, it’s that Tuesday morning, July 21st. Clean conditions, light offshore breeze, and a workable groundswell. That’s your session.

Rusty.

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