North Torrey Pines Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s brewin’ for North Torrey Pines. It’s gonna be a tale of two weeks – some fun, clean-ish surf early on, then a long, flat slog to finish.

We’ve got a bit of a pulse rollin’ in right from Sunday, July 26th. The water is real warm, sittin’ at about 74°F, which is a solid 7°F warmer than usual for this time of year – that’s seriously unusual, feels more like a bath than the Pacific.

The main window for a paddle is through the comin’ week, from Sunday the 26th until about Saturday, August 1st. Swell sizes are hoverin’ in the 4 ft to 6 ft range, mostly from the SW and SSW. There’s some solid energy there with combined swell energy readings in the high hundreds to over a thousand. The problem is the wind. It’s pretty much a constant cross-onshore breeze from the SW or WSW at 6 to 9 mph, which is gonna keep it a bit lumpy and rippled. It’s not blown out, but it’s not gonna be that silky glass we all dream of.

The standout period in this first week looks to be the morning of Thursday, July 30th and the morning of Friday, July 31st. On Thursday mornin’, we’ve got a 6 ft SW groundswell (period 14 seconds) with a light cross-onshore breeze – it’ll be a bit textured, but the size is solid for a beach break. Then Friday morning bumps up to a 6 ft S swell (period 14 seconds) with light onshore wind. That’s the biggest combo of the whole run. For a beginner-friendly spot like North Torrey Pines, that 6 ft to 6 ft swell is gettin’ towards the upper limit for learners, so if you’re still findin’ your feet, the smaller 4 ft to 5 ft days earlier in the week (Sunday to Wednesday) will be a much safer bet. The longer period (14-19 seconds) means longer waits between sets, but the waves will have better shape and push.

Crowds are somethin’ to keep in mind here – it’s an exposed beach, and with it bein’ “sometimes” crowded, you can expect a few heads in the water, especially on these better-sized days.

Now, after Saturday, August 1st, it drops right off. From Sunday, August 2nd all the way through to Monday, August 10th, we’re lookin’ at a massive dry spell. Swell sizes tumble to between 1 ft and 3 ft, and the combined wave energy dips into the low hundreds – that’s weak, gutless stuff. It’s all just “poor surf conditions” for most of that stretch. There’s no real standouts here; it’s a block of flat, unrideable days. A little flicker shows on August 7th with a long-period 3 ft SSW groundswell (19 seconds), but it’s paired with a 9 mph onshore wind and only enough energy for a brief, marginal ripple. Not worth suiting up for.

So, if you’ve got a window, your best bet is the last few days of July, especially Thursday the 30th and Friday the 31st. After that, you’re lookin’ at a long stretch of small, messy flatness that’s more kite-surfing weather than paddle-surfing weather.

Stay salty,
Rusty

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