Moss Landing Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Moss Landing.

To be straight with you, this is a tough stretch. The whole 16-day window is pretty much a write-off for decent surf. We’re looking at a long, flat, and choppy run. The first few days are full of small, weak swell with a persistent cross-on wind that’s just messing everything up. The water temp is sittin' around 60°F, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least the water's nice if you wanna just float, but don't expect to catch any proper waves.

The first real pulse of energy comes through on Thursday the 16th, with the swell building to 5ft in the morning and 6ft in the afternoon from the WNW. The combined energy gets up to 685 (moderate wave energy) by the afternoon, but that’s all ruined by a persistent 9 mph cross-on from the WSW. The period is short, only 8 seconds, so it’s gonna be a messy, lumpy closeout. This is not a standout call.

The next event is a classic case of "looks good on paper, terrible in the water." On Friday the 17th afternoon, we see a sudden jump to a 17-second period with a 2ft swell from the WNW. The combined energy is 497 (moderate wave energy), but the swell height is tiny. The wind is still cross-on from the WSW at 9 mph. The long period will make it look pretty, but it’s just too small to do anything with.

The best of a bad bunch might be the early morning of Sunday the 19th. The wind is the lightest it’s been all week at 6 mph, still cross-on from the WSW, but you’ll have a 2ft swell from the SW with a 17-second period. The combined energy is 535 (moderate wave energy). The forecast says "marginal surf or questionable tide conditions," which is a polite way of saying it’s going to be a tough, inconsistent session that only a longboard and a lot of patience could salvage. The long period and small size means it’ll be a grind for any shape.

The rest of the forecast is a ghost town. After the 19th, it drops into the gutter. The 20th and 21st have tiny 2ft and 1ft swells. There’s a brief spike to 4ft on the afternoon of Wednesday the 22nd, but with a 5-second period, it’s just wind chop. The same thing happens on the 24th, where we get a massive 24-second period from the SW, but the swell is only 2ft. It’s a tease.

The final small flare-up is on the 27th, with a 3ft, 18-second swell from the SW, with a combined energy of 662 (moderate wave energy), but it’s still cross-on. Honestly, nothing here is a standout. If you absolutely must paddle out, your best bet is the early morning of the 19th, but keep your expectations on the floor. The wind is never favorable, and the swell is either too small, too short-period, or blown out.

This is a classic case of "the surf is not happening." For kite surfers, the consistent cross-on wind might be more interesting than it is for us paddle surfers.

Rusty.

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