Southern California Surf 4cast Updated 5 – 1 – 2024Â
The Surf Forecast will be updated Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.Â
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THURSDAY Surf ForecastÂ
Geez ow – May 1st and the water temps remain literally Frozen in the 60 degree or below range. Hopefully things warm up soon and we get into a nice South swell pattern. Regardless… it’s time to map out those summer surf trips to the Tropics. Mainland Mex, El Salvador, Nica, Costa Rica and Panama are all on the table! The goal is to get into some toasty water that offers up a flinchless entry and delivers HH to OH surf at a minimum. Mid May… I’m outta here, and I’ll be ecstatic to leave these frigid seas in the rear view mirror… for at least a week!
As for the current “State of the Union”… We should be able to wring one more day out of this NW wind swell with waves in the waist to chest high + range from that same 310 degree angle with 8 -10 second intervals.
Thursday
2024-05-02 Thu 02:53 AM Moonrise
2024-05-02 Thu 04:38 AM 4.51′ High
2024-05-02 Thu 06:03 AM Sunrise
2024-05-02 Thu 11:54 AM -0.16′ Low
2024-05-02 Thu 01:45 PM Moonset
2024-05-02 Thu 06:46 PM 4.25′ High
2024-05-02 Thu 07:39 PM Sunset
The conditions – The conditions should be fair until at least 11:00AM, with light and variable winds that pick up steam out of the W/SW in the afternoon. The air temp tops out at 67 degrees.
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FRIDAY Surf ForecastÂ
It should be rideable again with waist high + short interval NW energy from 310 degrees with 8-9 second intervals and some smallish pulses out of the S/SW. The tides a little fat at first light but things should improve quickly throughout the morning.
Semi high tides start to creep into the picture – Fri 05:57 AM 4.56′ High
Friday
2024-05-03 Fri 12:16 AM 1.99′ Low
2024-05-03 Fri 03:25 AM Moonrise
2024-05-03 Fri 05:57 AM 4.56′ High
2024-05-03 Fri 06:02 AM Sunrise
2024-05-03 Fri 12:37 PM -0.11′ Low
2024-05-03 Fri 02:56 PM Moonset
2024-05-03 Fri 07:12 PM 4.83′ High
2024-05-03 Fri 07:39 PM Sunset
The conditions – The conditions should be fair with light, but mixed bag of wind directions until noon and stronger breezes out of the W/SW into the afternoon. The air temp tops out at 66 degrees.
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SATURDAY Surf ForecastÂ
Looks a little smaller with a combo of smallish NW wind swell and less than inspiring South swell. It looks like waist high surf up and down the coast with a chance at a few better waves on the dropping tide.
Nothing too crazy but a little fat early – Sat 07:03 AM 4.60′ High
Saturday
2024-05-04 Sat 01:12 AM 1.11′ Low
2024-05-04 Sat 03:56 AM Moonrise
2024-05-04 Sat 06:01 AM Sunrise
2024-05-04 Sat 07:03 AM 4.60′ High
2024-05-04 Sat 01:16 PM 0.07′ Low
2024-05-04 Sat 04:05 PM Moonset
2024-05-04 Sat 07:40 PM Sunset
2024-05-04 Sat 07:41 PM 5.43′ High
The conditions – There winds look to blow out of the SE/SSE, with a side shore element to them until 1100AM followed by S/SW breezes into the afternoon. The air temp holds at 66 degrees.
SUNDAY Surf ForecastÂ
We should be able to wring one more day out of this NW wind swell with waves in the waist to chest high range from that same 310 degree angle with 8 -10 second intervals.
Sunday
2024-05-05 Sun 02:02 AM 0.24′ Low
2024-05-05 Sun 04:25 AM Moonrise
2024-05-05 Sun 06:00 AM Sunrise
2024-05-05 Sun 08:02 AM 4.57′ High
2024-05-05 Sun 01:53 PM 0.36′ Low
2024-05-05 Sun 05:16 PM Moonset
2024-05-05 Sun 07:41 PM Sunset
2024-05-05 Sun 08:12 PM 5.97′ High
The conditions – The conditions look terrible with overzealous onshore winds putting a beating on the sea surface. It looks like a weird little stall mid morning, but expect double digit onshore gusts all day long. The air temp dips to 64 degrees.
MONDAY Surf ForecastÂ
We’ll have to wait and see what the winds leave behind for us, but as of today, it looks like we should have at least chest high + NW wind swell from 310 degrees with 8-10 second intervals.
Monday
2024-05-06 Mon 02:50 AM -0.51′ Low
2024-05-06 Mon 04:55 AM Moonrise
2024-05-06 Mon 05:59 AM Sunrise
2024-05-06 Mon 08:57 AM 4.44′ High
2024-05-06 Mon 02:28 PM 0.72′ Low
2024-05-06 Mon 06:27 PM Moonset
2024-05-06 Mon 07:42 PM Sunset
2024-05-06 Mon 08:45 PM 6.38′ High
The conditions – The conditions should improve for most beaches dramatically with an offshore/side shore wind direction until around 11:00 AM followed by stronger W/SW breezes into the evening. The air temp holds at 64 degrees.
Water Temps are as follows, (day of 4CAST update), Malibu 56, Santa Monica 58, South Bay 59,
Huntington 60, Newport 60.
I will be back on Friday with the next update.
About the Swell Magnet Forecast
One of the most exciting–and yet most challenging–aspects of surfing is the sheer variety of waves and weather conditions that affect the entire surfing experience. Any surfer who is interested in going beyond the most basic level of surfing will have to develop the ability to interpret waves and environmental conditions. This is important for ensuring both a safe and enjoyable experience.
The main difficulty lies in predicting how exactly the ocean and the environment will behave at any given time. One day, you could be riding four-footers all day and the next, you might be facing a glasslike surface with nary a ripple. Conditions can change drastically from day-to-day and even within the space of a couple of hours. To avoid wasted time and unproductive trips to the surf, it is essential to have access to reliable information on surf conditions.
Sites such as Swellmagnet.com offer up-to-the-minute surf reports that are essential to all California surfers. The company relies on an extensive network of surf cams and surf experts in order to monitor the precise surf conditions on any given day. All information is collated and analyzed by qualified surf specialists, with the resulting data being provided to the public via the Swellmagnet site.
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