Moss Landing Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here with a hard look at the Moss Landing stretch. Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you—this isn't one of those weeks where you're scrambling for your board. We've got a long, frustrating run of what I'd call "look but don't touch" surf ahead.

The overall pattern is a persistent cross-onshore wind regime, mainly from the W and WSW, that’s just going to keep a chop on everything. The water temp at Moss Landing is sitting at 61°, and that’s a whopping 5° warmer than what’s normal for this time of year—feels like the ocean missed the memo.

Let’s walk through it. Starting Monday, July 6th, we’ve got tiny swell around 2 ft from the WNW but with a short, weak period of 8 seconds. That combined energy is a measly 58—barely a pulse. The wind is a 9 mph cross-onshore, so it's choppy junk. Tuesday the 7th bumps up to 3 ft, but it's still cross-on and messy. Wednesday the 8th sees the biggest stuff of the period, with heights hitting 5 ft from the NW and the combined energy climbing to 500 (moderate wave energy), but the wind is still cross-on and the comment reads "poor surf conditions." It’s a no-go.

That same pattern—cross-onshore wind, ugly conditions—stretches all the way through the following week. We're looking at a gap of about 7 days with absolutely nothing to recommend. The swell height fluctuates between 3 ft and 6 ft, but none of it is clean. Even when the swell period gets interesting, like on Thursday, July 16th, when a very long-period groundswell of 20 seconds shows up with a combined energy of 340—that’s moderate—the wave height is only 1 ft, and it’s still cross-on breezes. That long period would be good for a point break, but here it’s just wasted.

Toward the very end, around Saturday, July 18th, we see a bigger combined energy pushing 553 (strong wave energy) with a 2 ft swell from the SW and a 18-second period. But again, the wind is cross-on, and the "poor surf conditions" tag sticks. If you’re a kiter, this setup might look a bit more interesting than paddle surfing, because the constant cross-on breeze and moderate swell could give you some drive, but for a surfer? Nothing to write home about.

Honestly, for an area that’s usually pretty consistent, this is a blank run that feels about normal for a flat spell. The waves just aren't cooperating, and the wind is our enemy. Stay patient. The forecasts can always change, but right now? Not looking good.

Rusty

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