Long Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty. Let’s talk about Long Beach.

We’ve got a bit of a slow start here. Nothing doing on Tuesday, July 14th, with onshore winds and weak, short-period swell making for poor conditions. Wednesday morning the 15th is still a write-off with messy cross-onshore wind and a pretty average 5ft swell, but things are about to change.

Wednesday afternoon on the 15th is where it all kicks off. The wind goes glassy – dead calm – and that 10ft SW groundswell with a 16-second period starts pouring in. The combined energy is a robust 4271. That’s a serious amount of power for experienced surfers only. This is a standout session. The water temperature is 59°, which is about 1° cooler than average for this time of year, so you’ll want the extra rubber.

Thursday morning the 16th keeps the quality high with glassy conditions again and an 8ft SW swell (period 13 seconds). Combined energy is 2381. This is still excellent and clean, but a touch more manageable than Wednesday arvo.

The run of good waves continues through Friday and into Saturday. Friday the 17th is a little messier with clean but onshore-tending winds, and the swell drops to about 6ft. Saturday morning the 18th turns glassy again with a 4ft SW swell (period 13 seconds) – a nice, clean, smaller option for intermediates. Saturday afternoon cranks back up with 6ft and a clean offshore wind.

Sunday the 19th morning is another potential standout. You’ve got a clean 7ft SW swell with a 12-second period and 1354 combined energy. It’s very good surf. The only catch is that by Sunday afternoon a moderate breeze picks up and the quality drops off.

Monday the 20th is a bit choppy and average for the breaks here.

Now, we hit a rough patch. From Tuesday the 21st through to Wednesday the 22nd of July, strong onshore and cross-onshore winds (up to 37 mph) ruin a big 12ft to 13ft SW swell. The combined energy is huge (over 5000), but it’s a complete mess. Absolute kook city for kite surfers, not for paddle surfing.

We get a solid rebound starting Thursday the 23rd afternoon. Winds turn offshore, and we get a clean 7ft WSW swell (13-second period) with 2430 combined energy. Friday the 24th is also excellent with a clean 8ft WSW groundswell (period 14 seconds, combined energy 2521). This is expert territory again.

Saturday the 25th afternoon is a genuine highlight. An 8ft SW swell with a very long 16-second period and a combined energy of 4176. The wind is light and clean. This is pumping, but that long period means it’s going to be fast and powerful – best suited for the point or reef if there’s any setup, though here at a sandbar it might throw some tricky sections.

From Sunday the 26th through to the end of the window (Wednesday the 29th), the winds are onshore or strong again, and the surf is either messy or blown out. Only for the dedicated.

The bottom line: The absolute best of the 16 days is Wednesday afternoon the 15th, with glassy conditions and a solid 10ft SW groundswell. The second standout is Saturday afternoon the 25th, with a very-long-period 8ft SW swell and clean conditions. For both of these, if you’re not an expert, stay on the sand. For a medium day, Saturday morning the 18th offers smaller, glassy, clean fun.

Keep your eyes on the forecast for that second week – it looks promising but is a fair way out.

Rusty.

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