Oceanside Harbor Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what Oceanside Harbor has in store for us over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, we've got a bit of a slow start. The surf is pretty marginal through Saturday, so don't expect much. The water is sitting at a warm 74°, which is a solid 6° warmer than usual for this time of year—that’s really unusual, so a spring suit or just a rash guard will be all you need.

The first real window of opportunity opens up on Sunday, September 6th. That morning, we’re looking at the standout session of the entire forecast. A clean 6ft south swell is rolling in with a 14-second period, giving it some decent grunt. The combined energy is moderate at 1272, and the real kicker is the offshore NNE breeze at 9 mph. That’ll keep the faces clean and make for some proper shaped waves. This is advanced territory, though—that 6ft is getting up there, and the jetty can throw some tricky sections. It’s very consistent here, so expect plenty of waves, but also expect the crowds to be likely given it’s a known spot. This is your best bet, hands down. The afternoon holds up with a similar 5ft south swell, just with a cross-off breeze, still clean and good fun.

Monday the 7th sees the swell size bump up a touch to 6ft from the SSW, but the wind swings cross-on from the WNW, chopping things up and making it messy. The quality drops off hard, and the energy is still moderate at 1272, but it’s just not worth it with that wind. Things go downhill from there.

From Tuesday the 8th all the way through the end of the forecast on September 20th, it’s a long stretch of poor to marginal surf. The swell drops off significantly, hanging around 1ft to 3ft with mostly weak energy readings—sometimes dipping below 300, which is barely a ripple. The winds are mostly light and cross-on or onshore, and while there are a few moments of clean conditions, the lack of any real size or power means there’s nothing to get excited about. There's a long gap of over a week with no real recommendations. If you’re desperate, the small windows on Wednesday the 9th or Thursday the 10th have some waist-high SW swell with light onshore wind, but it’s marginal at best. Honestly, with the swell so small and the wind being mostly cross-on, the setup at this beach/jetty looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing during that stretch.

So to sum it up: Sunday morning, September 6th is your day. Get on it while you can, because after that, it’s a long wait for the next real pulse.

Rusty.

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