Lunada Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s coming our way for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be honest with you – the next few days are a bit of a write-off. We’ve got a long stretch of poor conditions ahead. The water is sitting at a balmy 75°F, which is much warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won't be cold if you do decide to paddle out, but the surf itself is a struggle.

We’re looking at a gap of several days with no real recommendations. The first glimmer of hope comes on Friday the 4th of September. Lunada Bay is the only spot in the game, and Friday morning shows a little promise. We’re looking at clean conditions with a light cross-offshore breeze from the SE. The swell is a tiny 2ft from the SSW, with a long period of 17 seconds. That long period means there’s some decent energy behind it, with a combined energy of 400 (moderate). It’s a reef break for advanced surfers only, and it’s consistent, so it knows how to hold a swell. The waves should be clean and have some shape, but it’s tiny. It’s the best we’ve got, but it’s not a standout.

Saturday the 5th and Sunday the 6th are back to marginal or poor. The wind turns onshore and the swell drops off. The energy fades quickly.

Then we hit another dry spell. Monday the 7th through Wednesday the 16th of September is a real struggle. The wind is mostly onshore or cross-onshore, and the swell is small and weak. The combined energy levels are pitiful, often dropping to double digits (8, 25, 91). There’s a brief bump on Tuesday the 8th with a 4ft SSW swell, but the wind is howling onshore from the west at 9-16 mph, making it a complete mess. That’s not surf, that’s a washing machine. For a beach-and-reef setup like this, with that kind of wind and chop, it might look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The long period swells (15-18 seconds) we see on a few of these days are a tease. They’d be great at a point break or reef, but the wind just ruins it. For the whole second week, there’s nothing worth getting excited about. It’s a long, flat, windy run.

So, to sum it up: your only real window is Friday morning, September 4th. It’s small, clean, and has a bit of energy, but don’t expect any barrels. The rest of the 16 days is a dud. Hang tight and check back in.

Rusty.

Read more