Point Arena Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Mendocino County, USA)

Forecast
- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
Maps
Live
Weather State
Spot Information

Point Arena Surf Guide

Point Arena/Arena Cove in Mendocino County is a fairly exposed beach break that is often working. Winter is the best time of year for surfing here. Offshore winds are from the northeast. Clean groundswells prevail and the optimum swell angle is from the northwest. Both left and right reef breaks. Best around mid tide when the tide is rising. Likely to be crowded if working. Beware of sharks,wreck, rips, rocks and locals.

Point Arena Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Reef	2	very consistent	11.1°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Point Arena:

The best conditions reported for surf at Point Arena occur when a Northwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Northeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Point Arena (for consistent clean waves)?

decemberBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Point Arena with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of December. Clean surfable waves are typically found 35% of the time in December while 59% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 6% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

35%

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

59%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Point Arena Location Map

Interactive Point Arena surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Point Arena is Travis Afb (Fairfield) Airport (SUU) in USA, 173 km (107 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Point Arena is Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK), also in USA, 187 km (116 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Point Arena Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Monday, 4 May 2026, 08:15 Local Time

m, °C	Monday 04
ft, °F	8AM	11AM	2PM	5PM
Wave (m)	WNW	WNW	WNW	WNW
Period (s)	14	14	13	13
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- off	cross	cross	cross- off

What does Point Arena look like?

Latest photos from Point Arena. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: Michael J. Wise

Tides at Point Arena

Current tide and informaton

For Arena Cove, California, 2 km from Point Arena.

Next High Water: 02:44pm | 1.16m

Next Low Water: 06:55pm | 0.88m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Point Arena Sea Temperature

The Point Arena water temperature is rather cold (11.1 °C). Although it will be cloudy today, air temperatures will be relatively mild, feeling like 12.0 °C, so feeling about the same in the water as out of it. A winter steamer or even a good quality spring wetsuit and neoprene boots should suffice. Wear a hood and gloves if you have not been surfing for a while.

Today, many surfers would wear a winter wetsuit and neoprene boots.