Los Locos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Rusty here. Well, let's look at this. We've got a solid run of swell hitting Los Locos. The opening stretch on Wednesday is a bit of a washout—small, crossed-up waves, nothing to get too excited about. But hang tight, because things are about to turn on.

The real story here is the jump in size and quality for Friday afternoon and into the weekend. We're looking at a serious push of groundswell, and it's arriving with some decent period. That's the kind of energy that gets the heart pumping down here. The standout window has to be Friday afternoon: the swell is up to a solid 2.5m, with a period of 14 seconds, and we've got a clean offshore wind. That's the kind of session you call in sick for. Then we get a solid Saturday on either side of the day, with the morning offering 2.3m but with that lighter cross-off breeze making it more user-friendly for a lot of folks. Sunday and Monday will still have plenty of punch, with the swell holding a touch above the 1.5m mark, but the afternoon sea breezes will be around.

For the first day or so, the water's sitting right on average for this time of year, but it feels a touch warmer with the swell pushing through.

Given the combo of size, period, and offshore winds, Los Locos (La Jolla) is the clear winner. It's an exposed NW spot, so it's going to be all over this swell. For the best of the best, you want that Friday afternoon session, and then Saturday morning will be the pick of the weekend for the cleanest conditions. There will be a bit of a crew out, it's often that way here, but the quality of the waves will make it worth it. This is a break that suits a mix of abilities, but when it's overhead, which this will be, it's got some push to it.

Now, for the second week, the swell fades significantly. After the weekend, the wave heights back right off. By the 25th and 26th, we're into small, weak leftovers. There's a brief pulse of long-period energy on Monday the 28th, but the winds turn onshore and put a chop on it, so it's not going to be pretty. The end of the window on the 1st of October looks poor, with a mix of onshore winds and junk.

We're also looking at a substantial run of surfable waves here. The period is often in the 10-13 second range, which is clean and fun, and the energy is right up there with the bigger days. But then we get that longer period spike to 15 and 16 seconds on the 23rd and 28th, which is proper groundswell, and it gets everyone's attention. Just remember, with that long-period grand-daddy, sometimes it can jack up and close out on a sandbar, but for a break like this, the open exposure and the way the reef pulls things together makes it a different beast altogether. Those days are the ones where you want to be in the water.

There will be quite a few others out for the peak conditions. It's the sort of place that gets busy when the forecast is this clean. But the long period swells also groom the lines so well that you can still find your fair share of gems. If you've got the choice, aim for the Saturday morning session—clean, glassy, and firing.

Looks like we have a long stretch of nothing at the start of the outlook window on Wednesday and Thursday, so we're looking at a few days of small, crumbly waves. That gives the ocean time to settle down before the big swell arrives on Friday. It's a long wait, but when it fills in, it's going to be worth it.

The tail end of the run, from the 24th on, has some real small days, but even with the smaller surf, a couple of those late-September mornings are looking clean and glassy with a tiny long period swell moving through. That's about as good as it gets for a longboard and a relaxing paddle.

Alright, that's the story. Keep the stoke alive. Catch ya in the water.

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