Oceanside Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into it.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you: the surf outlook for Oceanside Pier is a bit of a mixed bag over the next two weeks. The water is sitting at 73°F which is much warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won't be freezing your ears off waiting for a set.

We start things off on Tuesday the 8th with a bit of a soggy morning. The swell is coming from the SSW at 4ft with a 10-second period. The combined energy of all swells directed here is 540, so there's some moderate juice in the water, but the cross-onshore wind from the WNW at 9 mph is making things a little choppy and messy. It’s a tough call, but it’s the first real chance of the period. The afternoon sees the wind pick up to 16 mph, swinging more cross-shore, and the ocean gets pretty ugly. Honestly, skip it.

Wednesday the 9th isn't looking much better. We’ve got a smaller 2ft SSW groundswell with a very long 16-second period (that’s proper groundswell). The energy is moderate at 382, but the wind is still cross-onshore and the surf is just too weak and bumpy to get excited about.

The best window in the near term looks like Thursday the 10th. The morning sees a 3ft SSW swell, a long 17-second period, and a light offshore wind from the SSW at 6 mph. That’s a clean setup. The combined energy is a solid 634. This is the standout for the first week. The period is long, so at a beach break like Oceanside Pier, expect long waits between sets, but the shape should be good and the paddle out easy. Get on it early.

After that, conditions fade out through the rest of the week and into the weekend. We get a few marginal days, but nothing worth writing home about. There’s a gap of poor to marginal conditions from Friday the 11th right through to Monday the 16th.

Now, looking further out, things start to get a little more interesting. On Wednesday the 16th, we see a 3ft SSW swell with a 17-second period and light offshore winds again. The combined energy is 619. It’s the same story as the 10th, but a little smaller. It’s a promising option, but being over a week away, just keep an eye on the long-range forecasts.

Then, around Sunday the 21st and Monday the 22nd, we get a run of 3ft SW swells with 17-second periods and light offshore winds. The energy is moderate to strong (666 and 609). This is the best-looking stretch of the entire outlook. The winds are clean, the swell is consistent, and the period is long. If you can wait, this is the time to go. The only downside is that these long-period swells can be a bit straight at a beach break, but the clean conditions should make up for it.

Bottom line: the first week is a struggle. The standout is Thursday the 10th morning. The second week looks much better, with the 21st and 22nd being the real targets. It’s a waiting game.

Rusty.

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