North Torrey Pines Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on offer for the next couple of weeks. We’ve got one spot on the radar, and it’s a bit of a mixed bag, so let’s get into it.

The overall pattern is for small, long-period groundswell from the south-southwest, but it’s going to be a struggle to find anything worth paddling out for. The water is sitting around average for the time of year, so nothing unusual there.

The first real chance to get wet kicks off Tuesday morning, the 18th of August. North Torrey Pines is seeing a 2ft SSW swell with a 16-second period, giving us a moderate combined energy of 397. The wind is light and from the west-southwest, which is onshore, so it’s not going to be glassy. The reports say it’s marginal at best, with questionable tide conditions, so it’s a bit of a gamble. This is a beginner-friendly break, and it’s fairly consistent, though crowds are sometimes an issue. The swell direction is coming from the south-southwest, but the optimum direction here is west, so it’s not the perfect angle.

Wednesday the 19th sees a similar story. A 3ft SSW swell with a 16-second period, combined energy of 475, still moderate. The wind is light and onshore. It’s still marginal, and the same tide issues are likely. We’re just not getting the clean conditions we need.

Thursday the 20th and Friday the 21st continue the trend. The swell drops a little to 3ft and 2ft, and the period shortens up to 13-14 seconds. The wind is light but cross-onshore, adding some bump to the surface. Expect poor surf conditions with small wind ripples. Not worth rushing for.

The weekend of the 22nd and 23rd is a bit of a write-off. Saturday morning sees a tiny 2ft swell, and while Sunday afternoon has a 2ft swell with a very long 19-second period from the southwest, the energy is still moderate at 340. That long period is more suited to a point or reef, and this is a beach break, so it might be a bit too straight and shifty. The wind is onshore, so it’s not clean.

The second week opens up with a slight improvement. On Thursday the 27th, we get a 4ft W swell, but the period is a short 8 seconds, and the combined energy is 410. The wind is light and onshore, and the conditions are still poor. This is a short-period windswell, not the good stuff.

The one standout in the whole 16-day window is the weekend of the 29th to the 30th of August. On Saturday the 29th, we get a 3ft SSW swell with a 17-second period, giving us a strong 816 combined energy. The wind is light and cross-onshore, so there’s a little bump, but it’s the best we’ve seen. Sunday the 30th is even better: a 4ft SSW swell with a 16-second period, combined energy of 951. This is the strongest energy of the whole period. The wind is still light and cross-onshore, but the swell is cleaner. This is the pick of the bunch. The swell is just over 3ft, so it’s fine for most surfers, but with that long period, it’s going to be a bit more powerful and setty. It’s still a beach break, so the long period might make it a bit straight, but the energy is there.

After that, the energy drops off again for the start of September, with 3ft to 2ft swells and onshore winds, so it fades out.

Overall, it’s a tough call. The surf is small and finicky for most of the period. The only real time to get excited is the final weekend of August. The Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th offer the best swell energy and size, even with the cross-onshore wind. For a beginner-friendly spot, it’s not going to be a classic, but if you’re desperate for a wave, that’s your window.

Rusty.

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