Pescaderos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s cooking for the Pescaderos stretch over the next couple of weeks. I’m not gonna lie to you – it’s a slow, slow start. We’ve got a long gap of flat or junk conditions before anything remotely worth paddling out for shows itself.

The first few days – Thursday the 13th through to the 21st – are pretty much a write-off. We’re looking at tiny swell, mostly around 1 ft to 3 ft, with poor surf and hardly any energy in the water (combined energy reading only 165 to 336). Winds are cross or cross-onshore, so it’s messy and weak. Nothing to get excited about at all.

We finally see a bit of life around Monday the 17th afternoon, when a tiny bump of 2 ft from the SSW shows up with clean conditions and a light cross-offshore wind (9 mph). Still, it’s barely surfable, so don’t go expecting much.

Tuesday the 18th is where things get more interesting, especially in the afternoon. Swell jumps a bit to 5 ft out of the WNW, with a short-period 8 seconds, which is a weak, choppy windswell. The combined energy climbs to a moderate 386, and we have light cross-shore winds. It’s marginal, but it’s the best we’ve seen so far.

Wednesday the 19th afternoon holds similar – 5 ft again from the WNW, period still short at 8 seconds, but combined energy now up to 408 and winds staying light cross-shore. It’s still only marginal – good enough for a shortboard, but not clean or powerful enough to get stoked about.

After that, the swell fades again. From the 20th through the 26th, we’re back to small, weak surf – 1.0 ft to 2 ft, periods around 13–19 seconds but not enough size or energy (combined energy drops below 200). Winds stay light and cross, so water surface is calm, but there’s just no push.

The one glimmer in the entire forecast is Thursday afternoon, August 27th. The combined energy climbs back to a moderate 287, with 2 ft from the SW, period 14 seconds, and crucially the wind goes clean cross-offshore at 6 mph. The forecast says *expect good surf conditions* – the only time in the 16 days we get that call. The swell direction (SW) is matching the optimum for Pescaderos (WSW) closely enough that the break should pick it up decently. It won’t be big and won’t be for beginners, but for a few hours it’ll be clean, lined up and fun on a longboard or fish.

Then on Friday the 28th morning, we get a small pulse of 3 ft from the WNW (8 seconds) with light cross-shore wind, combined energy 364. Still marginal, but you might sneak a session in.

Water temperature is about average for this time of year, nothing wild to report.

So, the standout here is that Thursday afternoon, August 27th. Not a classic, but given the rest of the window, it’s the best we’ve got – small but clean, with proper direction and calm wind. Everything else is either flat or just not worth the effort. If you’re hanging out for a proper swell, you might be waiting a while, but the forecasts can always shift.

Keep your eyes on the horizon,
Rusty

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