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17th St. Seasonal Surf Averages

Based on the last ten years data for this location this page gives seasonal trends and an idea of what kind of conditions you can expect and when. Of course these are just averages - it's worth reading carefully to understand exactly what they mean and to recognise the kind of variation you could expect on a trip because an average can never tell the whole story. Click on a month below to see more detail.
If you want a past forecast for a specific date range then click here.

Local Photo


Swell Consistency and Wind Overview

Wind Swell Ground Swell
77%
72%

5%

Jan
80%
75%

5%

Feb
74%
65%

9%

Mar
71%
62%

9%

Apr
71%
61%

10%

May
66%
57%

9%

Jun
42%
36%

6%

Jul
37%
36%

1%

Aug
45%
42%

3%

Sep
43%
41%

2%

Oct
57%
53%

4%

Nov
75%
71%

4%

Dec
This graph shows the percentage of days that had a ridable wind swell (7 seconds period or more) or groundswell (10 seconds period or more) of over 3ft. It also shows the dominant wind direction. Not all of these days will neccessarily give great surf, and very short lived wind swells or longer period secondary swells may produce surf not recorded, but it gives a clear idea of the seasonal trend and a rough guide to the chances of scoring something ridable.

Monthly Overview

Jan
Swell
Consistency
77%
Average Swell
Height
5ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Feb
Swell
Consistency
80%
Average Swell
Height
5ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Mar
Swell
Consistency
74%
Average Swell
Height
4ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Apr
Swell
Consistency
71%
Average Swell
Height
4ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
May
Swell
Consistency
71%
Average Swell
Height
4ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Jun
Swell
Consistency
66%
Average Swell
Height
3ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Jul
Swell
Consistency
42%
Average Swell
Height
3ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Aug
Swell
Consistency
37%
Average Swell
Height
3ft
Average Swell
Period
14s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Sep
Swell
Consistency
45%
Average Swell
Height
3ft
Average Swell
Period
14s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Oct
Swell
Consistency
43%
Average Swell
Height
3ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Nov
Swell
Consistency
57%
Average Swell
Height
4ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell
Dec
Swell
Consistency
75%
Average Swell
Height
4ft
Average Swell
Period
13s
Dominant Wind
Dominant Swell

Understanding this Data

These swell averages are calculated ONLY on swells of more than 7 seconds period. This means this is the average height of a swell that's likely to produce ridable surf NOT an average of every wave heading toward the beach in a month. Likewise the period is the average period OVER 7 seconds. There will be days that have short period wind swells that won't produce and ridable swell and these are excluded from the averages. The consistency figure gives the percentage of days that meet this condition.

For example if the consistency is 50% you could expect the 'average' swell for about 15 days in the month. Of course an average tells only part of the story. A combination of very large and very small swells may produce the same average as a consistent medium sized swell.

Monthly Data

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

Nearby Spots

Santa Ana River Jetties
Bolsa Chica
Newport Beach
36th St Newport
Blackies
Surfside Jetty
Dolphin Street
13th Street
Seal Beach Pier
7th Street
The Wedge
Corona Del Mar Jetty
72nd Place
64th Place
Morro Beach
Rockpile/Heisler Park
Laguna Beach (Thalia Street)
Laguna Beach (Brooks Street)
Agate/Pearl Street
Cabrillo Point
Salt Creek
Strands Point
Doheny State Beach
Poche Beach
Torrance Beach/Haggertys
Lower Haggertys
Haggertys
Palos Verdes Cove
Lunada Bay
Redondo Beach Breakwater
204s
San Clemente Pier
Hermosa Beach
T Street (Trafalgar Street)
Manhattan Beach
El Porto Beach
Trestles
San Onofre
Trails
Venice Beach
Bay Street
Santa Monica Municipal Pier
Sunset Point
Chart House Rights
Topanga State Beach
Malibu - First Point
Oceanside
Carlsbad
Latigo Canyon
Point Dume
Westward Beach
Ponto
Grandview
Zuma Beach County Park
Beacons
Moonlight
Swamis
Secos
Cardiff Reef
Zero/Nicholas Canyon County Beach
Solana Beach
North Del Mar
Leo Carrillo
Del Mar
Staircase Beach
County Line/Yerba Buena Beach
Torrey Pines/Blacks Beach
Horseshoe
Scripps Pier/La Jolla
Windansea Beach