5.11.23 – After a little bit of rain and some solid surf this past week, were looking at some more solid surf this coming weekend. Another round of Southern Hemi swell will move up from the southwest bringing some nice waves for Friday morning. These waves will back off through Friday evening and gradually be replaced by a ground swell coming in out of the northwest.
Saturday so far looks like our weakest day, but waves honestly still look decent. 3-foot waves will still be possible from Orange County down to San Diego as well as around Ventura County. Waves stay relatively small through Sunday morning but by the afternoon we’ll see some northwest swell move in from the central Pacific.
Periods look to stay between 12 and 14 seconds all weekend so the swell with both these systems look clean. This is especially true with the first round of swell that will come in from the southwest on Friday. Winds look to stay weak through most of the weekend although they will pick up onshore for the evenings. Speeds look to stay relatively light though with between 5 and 10 mph winds max for the evening hours.
Best Bets
- Friday morning looks fantastic south of OC as the southwest swell peaks around 4-5 ft with 14 second periods and light winds.
- Friday morning near VC also looks just as nice except waves will be about 6 inches to 1 ft shorter than that of near OC
- Sunday afternoon looks nice for west facing beaches as northwest swell picks up around 3-4 ft. Winds stay lighter south of LA.
FRIDAY
The Southern Hemi swell looks like it will peak in strength around 9 am Friday morning. 4–5 ft waves are indicated by models for areas south of OC down to San Diego. This will end up being the best time place to surf for the coming weekend. Ventura to Malibu looks like another good option with 3-4 ft waves expected for the morning.
The swell will lose about a foot in size through the day to finish the evening with 4 ft waves south of OC and 3 ft waves around VC. Winds look to stay light through most of the day with a light onshore breeze developing across the area after 4 p.m. Highs look to be around 80 for Los Angeles with upper-60s to low-70s for the surrounding area.
SATURDAY
This looks like our slowest day although waves still look to be of decently sized and clean. The morning will start out not too much different than Friday night with 3-4 ft waves south of OC and 3 ft waves around VC. Periods may shorten by 1-2 seconds.
Through the day waves will weaken with the afternoon hours seeing 2-3 ft waves near VC and 3 ft waves between Huntington Beach and San Diego. The southwest swell will slowly be replaced by the northwest swell as primary by the evening. Winds pick up during the evening like Friday although they could be stronger north of Los Angeles. High look a degree or two warmer across the area as well.
SUNDAY
Sunday morning will continue to see small waves like what is expected Saturday evening. Winds will have died down by this point so even though the swell looks to be small, at least it will be clean. 2-3 ft waves look likely south of OC and near VC with 1-2 ft heights elsewhere so this will likely be when we see the smallest waves.
Thankfully, waves pick up in size by the afternoon as the northwest swell really starts to move in. The afternoon will see closer to 3-4 ft sized waves from Oceanside down to San Diego along with the coast between Oxnard and Santa Monica. This should make for some nice surfing for the latter half of the day as periods stay around 12 seconds. Winds may pick up around 10 mph to the north, but they look weaker south of LA.