North Torrey Pines Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, grab a seat. It’s Rusty here, and I’ve been looking at the charts for North Torrey Pines. Honestly, it’s a pretty quiet stretch coming up. The water is sitting at a warm 73°F which is much warmer than you’d expect for this time of year, so that’s a nice little bonus if you’re just wanting a paddle.

The main issue is that for the next 16 days, the swell is present but it’s just not coming together with the right wind for good surf. Most of the time the wind is either cross-onshore or straight onshore, which is putting a chop on the surface and wrecking the shape. The wave comments are all saying "marginal" or "poor," so the reality is there’s no real standout session.

We kick off on Tuesday, the 25th. The morning has a small 2ft SW groundswell, with a long 16-second period, but the wind is light and onshore. The energy is moderate at 408, but it’s just messy. The afternoon is a tiny bit better with 3ft from the south at 13 seconds, but the wind turns cross-onshore, creating small wind ripples.

Wednesday the 26th sees a little more size, with 5ft on the morning, but the cross-onshore breeze at 15 km/h makes it choppy and uninviting. The energy jumps to 888, but the quality is not there. The rest of the week through to the 31st keeps serving up these 3ft to 4ft south swells, but the wind is consistently cross-onshore or onshore, with the odd "unknown" wave state that doesn't inspire confidence.

There’s a long gap of poor conditions. The first half of September is pretty rough. The first day of September is a write-off, and the wind only gets stronger on the 1st, hitting 20 km/h cross-onshore. The energy is weak. The 2nd and 3rd are still poor, with the swell dropping to 2ft.

The best of a bad bunch – and I’m stretching here – looks like the afternoon of Thursday the 3rd of September. You get a 3ft SSW groundswell with a very long 18-second period, and the wind is light and onshore, with an energy of 696. The water is still warm. But even then, the forecast still calls it "marginal." It’s a point break and reef setup, so that long period will hold up better than it would at a beach, but it’s still not good.

Then, the 4th of September brings a bit more consistency with 3ft to 4ft SSW groundswells, periods around 17 seconds, and the wind is only light cross-onshore, with energy in the 700s. It’s still described as marginal.

If you’re a beginner, anything over 5ft is a no-go, and that never happens here. The real problem is the lack of clean, offshore wind. For a beginner spot, this is not the time to learn. For everyone else, the conditions are just too poor to get excited about. The consistency is fair, but the quality is not there. This is a stretch where you’re better off waiting for the next forecast update.

Rusty.

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