Pismo Beach Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here, checking in on our local stretch. We got a mixed bag coming up over the next couple of weeks, so let’s get into it.

We’re starting off small and a little tricky. The water’s sitting at about 65°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year – not a game changer, but a nice little bonus for the session. The first real chance to get wet is Saturday morning, but it’s nothing to write home about. We’ve got a small 2 ft swell from the SW, with a long period of 14 seconds, so there’s some energy in the water for its size, but the combined energy is only 246. It’s light cross-onshore wind though, making for bumpy conditions at Pismo Beach Pier. Not great, but if you’re desperate, you might scratch out a few.

Sunday sees a jump in size but a drop in quality. The swell bumps up to 5 ft from the WNW, but the period drops to a short 8 seconds with the combined energy at 369. That’s a weak, choppy windswell. By Sunday afternoon, it gets ugly – strong 19 mph cross-shore winds and an 8 ft lumpy mess of a wave (955 combined energy). That’s only for the experts, and even they won’t enjoy it. Honestly, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Monday the 14th is the first sniff of something half-decent. The swell drops back to 6 ft from the WNW, still short period, but the combined energy is 767. The wind is light cross-shore, so it’s not total chaos. It’s still marginal, and the break is consistent, so there will be waves, but they won’t be pretty. Pismo Beach Pier is exposed to the WNW, which is what’s coming, and the optimum direction is from the WNW, so at least the angle is right.

Honestly, for the next week and a half, it’s a whole lot of the same story – marginal or poor conditions. We see a few small windows of cleaner but tiny swell, like Wednesday the 16th with a 2 ft, 17-second long period groundswell and light wind, but the combined energy is only 346, so it’s a tease. The long period might give you some shape at the pier, but with that size, you’ll be waiting for a set.

The one true standout on the horizon is Monday, September 23rd. We get a 4 ft swell from the WNW with a period of 10 seconds and light offshore wind from the SW in the morning. The combined energy is 673, which is moderate. That onshore wind is the key – it’ll clean things right up. For Pismo Beach Pier, this is the best-looking window in the whole forecast. It’s a long way out, so don’t book the day off just yet, but it’s the one to keep an eye on.

After that, we fade back into small, weak SW swells with light cross-onshore winds, and the combined energy drops back below 300. A few days around September 27th have almost nothing happening, with combined energy at 208 and 253. It’s a pretty dry run for the end of the month.

So, to sum it up: don’t get too excited for the next couple of weeks. There’s only one potential highlight way out on the 23rd. The rest is small, messy, or both. It’s a quiet spell, but it won’t last forever.

Rusty.

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