San Diego Surf forecast – Finally getting a few new waves!

After what seems like years of waiting (but was actually only a few days) the first of our new SW swells started to arrive Wednesday afternoon. Fortunately this swell is going to stick around for a couple of days and mix with another stronger pulse from the South Pacific.

So on Thursday we are going to see a mix of overlapping SSW swells (190-220)...one of which will be fading and the other one filling in with some long-period energy (around 19-seconds). We will also have some minor NW windswell slipping into a few spots. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like there is going to be enough energy from the NW to break up the SSW’er...so expect some walled up shape at the beach breaks...and better shape at the exposed points and reefs. You can already see the first swell hitting the buoys this afternoon.



Sizewise we can expect most average SW facing breaks to hold around waist-chest high tomorrow. The standout SW facing spots, mostly around the San Diego/OC border and through the better summer spots in North and Central SD County, will have some shoulder high+ sets at times. Look for the higher tides to burger it out a bit...but still expect some rideable, if slow, shape as the tide peaks.

As of right now winds don’t look all that bad for tomorrow. If you looked outside (or heard the thunder) you know that our weather is a bit unstable. This instability, which is a mix of tropical/sub-tropical moisture and an upper-level low-pressure, has been sort of hanging offshore for the last couple of days but is forecast to start moving northward tonight sending most of this funkiness to Central California. It should move fast enough that we see light and variable winds through the morning...with just a touch of texture in a few of the more exposed areas. The normal NW winds 10-14 knots move in through the afternoon. Here is the NWS graphical forecast for tomorrow morning, which looks pretty good.



I would probably try and get on it in the morning if you can...though I would keep a weather eye on the wind just in case this funk sticks around. Like I said above...don’t expect the best shape out of the beach breaks...SW facing points and reefs will have the best shape. If you can’t get to surf one of those try falling back on a jetty/sandbar/pier or something that can break up the SW lines.

Here are the tides...hope you guys get a few.

02:24AM LDT -0.3 L
08:33AM LDT 3.4 H
01:21PM LDT 1.8 L
07:39PM LDT 5.8 H

Remember if you are interested in the full Southern California Surf forecast check out my blog at www.socalsurf.com

- Adam Wright
Surf Forecaster