San Mateo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on offer.

Honestly, mate, this is a tough stretch. We’re looking at a solid block of days where the wind just won’t play ball. The mornings are the only real chance to get wet, and even then, it’s going to be a grind. There’s no single standout day that screams “drop everything and go,” but there are a few windows where you can salvage a session if you’re keen.

Let’s start at San Mateo. This is a point break, exposed to the NW, but we're getting a solid, long-period groundswell from the SW running through the first week. The wave energy is moderate to strong, hitting 664 (moderate energy) on Wednesday the 2nd of September, and building.

The best chance you’ll get is actually the Thursday morning of the 3rd of September. The swell is 4 ft from the SW with a very long period of 18 seconds. That’s proper groundswell. On a point break like this, that long period will groom into nice, lining waves. The wind is a light cross-shore from the SSW at 10 km/h (6 mph). That’s about as good as it gets all forecast. It won’t be perfect, but it’s the cleanest window we have.

Friday the 4th of September morning is also worth a look. The swell bumps up to 5 ft, still from the SW with a 16-second period. The energy is strong at 1169. Again, it’s that light cross-shore wind from the SW at 10 km/h (6 mph). The tide might be a bit weird, but the size and period make it the biggest, most powerful morning of the lot.

After that, it’s a lot of same story: afternoons are blown out by strong cross-onshore wind, and the mornings are marginal with cross-shore breezes. You get a consistent pulse of SW swell through the whole first week, but the wind is the enemy. From around the 6th of September onward, the swell drops off, and the energy fades into the weak range by the 12th.

There’s a little flicker on the 14th of September with a 3 ft, 14-second swell and light cross-shore wind, but it’s just a marginal call. By the second week, the energy is weak (in the 400-500 range) and the surf looks small and wonky.

Look, for this area, a long blank run with marginal mornings and blown-out afternoons is a pretty normal pattern. The water temperature is a massive 80°F, which is much warmer than normal for this time of year – about 8°F warmer. That’s very unusual, so at least you’ll be warm while you’re scratching for a wave.

To sum it up: your best bet is the Thursday morning (3rd) for the cleanest conditions, or the Friday morning (4th) for the most size and power. Everything else is just a gamble on a morning low-tide mission.

Rusty.

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