Stinson Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s cookin’ for Stinson Beach over the next couple of weeks. I’ll be straight with you – it’s a bit of a mixed bag, but there are a couple of windows where it’ll be worth paddling out.

Right now, we’re looking at a pretty quiet start. The water is sitting at 63°F which is a solid 5°F warmer than usual for this time of year – that’s really warm, almost feels like summer’s hanging on. The first real chance to get wet comes Tuesday morning, September 8th. It’s small, with some 3ft swell from the SSW, but the energy is moderate (389). The wind is light from the SSE, keeping it a bit messy with a cross breeze. It’s surfable but nothing to write home about.

The real standout for the whole outlook is Wednesday morning, September 9th. This is the one to circle. It’s glassy – dead calm wind from the NNW at just 3 mph – and the water will be clean as a mirror. There’s a long-period groundswell from the SW at 2ft, but with a 19-second period, that’s some serious energy for its size (268). That long period means the waves will have shape and push, but at a beach break like Stinson, it might break a bit too straight. Still, for a small, clean day, this is as good as it gets. The crowds can show up sometimes, so get out early.

Thursday morning, September 10th, sees a bit more size with 3ft from the SW and a 17-second period, but the wind is onshore from the west at 6 mph, making it marginal. The energy is on the rise though (547).

Friday morning, September 11th, is similar – 3ft from the SW, 16-second period, but wind from the west at 9 mph is cross-onshore, so it’s a bit lumpy. Energy is strong (686). Friday afternoon picks up to 6ft from the WNW, but that’s a short-period windswell (7 seconds) with 16 mph winds – it’s going to be ugly.

Saturday, September 12th, is a write-off. The swell hits 6ft to 7ft from the WNW, but with fresh 19 mph winds, it’s lumpy, choppy, and messy. That kind of size and wind at a beach break is more for the kite crew than us paddle surfers.

We get a bit of a lull from Sunday, September 13th, through to Monday, September 14th, with small, wind-affected waves. Not worth your time.

Then, Wednesday morning, September 16th, we get another glassy moment. Wind from the NW at 3 mph, clean as a whistle, but the swell is tiny – 1ft from the SW with a 16-second period. The energy is low (262). It’s surfable, but barely.

The next true standout is Friday morning, September 18th. Glassy again, wind from the west at 3 mph, with 2ft swell from the SW and a long 19-second period. Energy is moderate (403). This is another clean, small-wave day with real quality. The long period will give it a nice push, but again, at a beach break it might be a bit straight.

After that, the outlook goes quiet again. There’s a small window on Tuesday morning, September 22nd, with dead calm, glassy conditions and 2ft from the SW (315 energy), but it’s very small.

Finally, Wednesday morning, September 23rd, we see a spike in size to 4ft from the WNW with an 8-second period, glassy conditions, and moderate energy (474). That’s a fun, punchy little wave if the wind holds. Wednesday afternoon jumps to 6ft from the WNW, but the wind cranks up to 16 mph, so it’ll get blown out.

Best bets: Wednesday morning, September 9th and Friday morning, September 18th. Glassy, clean, with long-period groundswell. Small, but perfect.

Stay stoked, Rusty.

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