Pacific Beach Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s brewing at Pacific Beach Pier.

Honestly, mate, the next couple of weeks are looking pretty flat and frustrating. The swell energy never really gets going with any proper push, and the wind is going to be a constant problem, blowing cross-onshore almost every session. It’s a pretty grim run of small, choppy conditions.

We start off Tuesday, September 15th, with tiny swell – just 2 ft of weak, long-period SW groundswell (260 combined energy). The wind is already messy with a cross-on breeze at 9 mph, so the surface is choppy. Not worth paddling out for. Things don’t improve through the rest of the week.

By Wednesday, September 16th, the swell bumps up a bit to 3 ft, and the energy climbs into the moderate range (401), but the wind stays cross-onshore. That’s the story the whole week: same small waist-high lines, same side-shore breeze messing up the face. Thursday through Saturday are all in the same boat – marginal surf with cross-onshore wind and swell around 2 ft to 3 ft.

The first real glimmer comes on Sunday, September 20th, when the wind turns directly onshore early. The swell is still only 3 ft from the SW, but with that long period (18 seconds) and light onshore breeze, it could get a bit cleaner. The energy is moderate at 504. It’s still marginal, but it’s the least awful looking morning in the first week.

We then hit a dead zone from September 21st through September 28th. The swell stays stuck around 3 ft to 3 ft, but the wind is relentless – cross-onshore every day, sometimes moderate at 12 mph. The wave energy drops back into the low-to-moderate range, and the period shortens up. It’s just not happening. Surfable waves are basically absent.

Finally, on September 29th (Tuesday morning), we get a slight tease. The swell holds at 2 ft, but it’s a long-period 17-second SW groundswell with light cross-onshore wind. The energy is moderate (386), but the conditions are still marginal. It’s a reminder that a decent winter groundswell could make this spot work, but not today.

The very last entry on September 30th shows a jump to 4 ft from the west, but with a short period of only 8 seconds. That’s windswell, not groundswell, and it’ll be crumbly and weak, even with the light onshore wind.

The bottom line: there is no standout session here. The first week is a write-off, and the second week only offers a couple of marginal windows. If you’re desperate, the mornings of September 20th or 29th are your best bet for a grovelly longboard session, but even then, the wind is working against you. It’s a frustrating stretch.

Rusty.

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