San Mateo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's cookin' at San Mateo over the next couple of weeks. It's a bit of a mixed bag, so buckle up.

Right off the bat, we've got a classic setup for the experienced crew. San Mateo is an advanced point break that's pretty exposed out here, so when it gets a sniff of that NW swell, it can be magic. Right now, the water's sitting at a balmy 81°, which is far warmer than usual for this time of year – you might not even need a spring suit.

Looking at the immediate future, it’s a bit frustrating. We're starting with a few days where the conditions are just not playing ball. Thursday the 13th has a bit of south-west swell at 2ft, but a 12 mph cross-on wind is making a mess of it. Friday and Saturday the 14th and 15th bring a bit more size, around 4ft to 5ft from the SW, but it's still cross-shore with a chop. It’s rideable if you’re desperate, but it’s not what we're here for.

The real standout, and I mean the clear winner of this whole forecast, is the window around Tuesday the 18th of August. On Tuesday morning, the wind is set to go totally *glassy* – absolute zero. Combine that with a clean 3ft SW groundswell with a nice long 16-second period, and you’ve got a recipe for perfection at this point break. The energy is moderate (475), but for a point, that long period is going to produce some beautifully lined-up, bowly waves. It won't be huge, but it will be pristine. Early bird gets the worm, because the afternoon gets messy again.

After that, it gets pretty bleak for a long stretch. From the 19th through the 25th, we're looking at small, weak swell and almost constant cross or cross-on winds. It's a real dry spell. There's just a brief flicker of hope on the 26th with some clean morning conditions, but the swell is tiny at 1ft.

Hold onto your hats, though, because our second big highlight is a long way off. On Friday the 28th of August, the stars are threatening to align again. Another morning of glassy conditions – wind swinging to the west at 0 mph – and this time the swell is a bit stronger at 4ft from the SW with a 16-second period as well. The energy is moderate (706), and the groundswell period means those lines will be clean and powerful. It's almost three weeks away, so keep a loose eye on it, but it has all the hallmarks of a very, very good session for the experts who know the lineups.

So for now, your one and only true standout is that Tuesday the 18th morning glass-off. The rest is either messy or too small until that promising Friday the 28th comes into range.

Rusty.

Read more