Surf Forecasts:
The Rivermouth surf forecast from 14 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 15 Jul, 8PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 8s period, WNW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 16 Jul, 5PM (local time) - 6.5ft (2.0m), 8s period, WNW swell with 525 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 14 Jul, 5PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 8s period with WNW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Rivermouth this week:
The surf forecast for The Rivermouth over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Jul 14) at 5PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.0m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 12s. Another secondary swell of 0.3m and 14s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Rivermouth in the next 16 days are 2.0m 8s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 16) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.2m 8s period and expected on Friday (Jul 17) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5PM (Tue 14th Jul) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 8PM (Wed 15th Jul) | 5ft (1.5m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 5PM (Thu 16th Jul) | 6.5ft (2.0m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Rivermouth over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking for The Rivermouth over the next couple of weeks.
Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – this run is a bit of a slow burner. The Rivermouth is a sandbar setup that rarely breaks, and the next week and a half is looking pretty ordinary overall. The water is running at 60°F which is much warmer than usual for this time of year, so at least you won’t be shivering while you wait.
The only real window that gets me talking is Thursday, July 16th. The morning kicks off with a glassy 6ft of swell from the WNW, and the combined energy is moderate (676). That’s the cleanest you’ll see it. The afternoon holds a bit more size at 7ft with clean cross-offshore winds, energy builds to 794 – still moderate but punchy. That’s the pick of the whole forecast. It’s not huge, but for a spot that rarely lines up, this is your moment.
After that, it’s mostly small, cross-on slop. Friday, July 17th morning sees 4ft from the WNW, but the wind is cross-on and the energy is moderate (533) – just a bit messy. The rest of the run through to the end of July is all small stuff, mostly under 3ft, with persistent cross-on winds and poor conditions. There’s a little spike in energy around the 25th and 26th (up to 1423 – strong), but it’s still cross-on and the swell is short-period or shifting, so don’t get your hopes up.
In short: if you’re keen, pencil in the morning of Thursday, July 16th. The rest is a write-off for paddle surfing. Because it rarely breaks here, a blank run like this is pretty normal. Hang tight, and check back in case the forecast shifts.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 26°C on Tue afternoon, min 13°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Fri afternoon, min 12°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 14 | Wednesday 15 | Thursday 16 | Friday 17 | Saturday 18 | Sunday 19 | Monday 20 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 13 | WNW 8 | SW 18 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | W 17 | W 16 | SW 17 | WNW 16 | W 16 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 102 | 126 | 152 | 142 | 278 | 331 | 400 | 525 | 409 | 237 | 215 | 190 | 309 | 263 | 177 | 295 | 439 | 271 | 251 | 318 | 322 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | glassy | glassy | cross-on | cross | glassy | glassy | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy |
High Tide | 12:31PM1.37m | 10:45PM1.98m | 1:10PM1.40m | 11:37PM1.87m | 1:48PM1.42m | 00:29AM1.70m | 2:25PM1.45m | 1:22AM1.49m | 3:02PM1.49m | 2:20AM1.26m | 3:39PM1.52m | 3:30AM1.06m | 4:16PM1.55m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 4:42PM0.86m | 5:48AM-0.51m | 5:38PM0.79m | 6:32AM-0.41m | 6:37PM0.71m | 7:14AM-0.26m | 7:39PM0.64m | 7:55AM-0.06m | 8:46PM0.56m | 8:35AM0.17m | 9:59PM0.48m | 9:18AM0.41m | 11:12PM0.39m | ||||||||
 | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | | |
 | 5:58 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — |
 | — | 8:28 | — | — | 8:27 | — | — | 8:27 | — | — | 8:25 | — | — | 8:24 | — | — | 8:24 | — | — | 8:23 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 23 | 26 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 20 | 20 | 26 | 21 | 18 | 21 | 17 | 18 | 21 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 17 |
Feels °C | 23 | 25 | 20 | 21 | 23 | 19 | 19 | 23 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 8 | SSW 12 | WNW 8 | SW 18 | SSW 12 | WNW 8 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | W 17 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 16 | WNW 8 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 |
| kJ | 82 | 85 | 138 | 109 | 50 | 331 | 125 | 122 | 409 | 237 | 215 | 116 | 95 | 263 | 51 | 295 | 439 | 271 | 251 | 318 | 322 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 13 | W 14 | SW 18 | SW 12 | W 13 | SW 16 | WNW 19 | WNW 19 | W 18 | W 17 | SW 14 | W 16 | SW 17 | SSW 18 | W 16 | WNW 10 | S 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 12 | S 11 |
| kJ | 102 | 37 | 152 | 38 | 55 | 125 | 123 | 120 | 169 | 151 | 74 | 190 | 309 | 211 | 177 | 81 | 128 | 106 | 123 | 137 | 85 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 14 | SW 18 | SSW 12 | W 13 | SW 17 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SW 15 | SSW 19 | SW 18 | SW 15 | W 16 | SW 13 | SSW 16 | W 15 | W 15 | WNW 9 | W 14 | W 14 | WNW 8 |
| kJ | 36 | 81 | 58 | 31 | 44 | 47 | 28 | 27 | 76 | 145 | 84 | 104 | 186 | 44 | 100 | 172 | 163 | 52 | 106 | 104 | 26 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | WNW 8 | NW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | NW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | NW 8 | NW 8 | WNW 8 | — | — | WNW 8 | — | NW 10 | WNW 9 | — | WNW 8 | WNW 4 | — |
| kJ | — | 126 | 248 | 142 | 278 | 540 | 400 | 525 | 698 | 390 | 183 | — | — | 91 | — | 154 | 106 | — | 47 | 17 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 103 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 103 | 2 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Cruz | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our The Rivermouth surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the The Rivermouth Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Rivermouth provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Rivermouth can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Rivermouth surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Rivermouth) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Rivermouth may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
The Rivermouth is 2 km (1 miles) from Santa Cruz. If you plan a vacation in Santa Cruz, look for hotels and other accommodation in Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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