Zmudowski State Beach Surf Report & Forecast
Heavy, empty sand at the top of the east shore.
Current conditions
shorebreak only
Very Poor
Modelled on real 10-foot bathymetry. These figures cover size, shape and wind. Whether the wave is makeable comes from the simulation.
- Swell
- 1.6 ft at 5s from the W
- Wind
- 8 mph SSE cross-shore
- Tide
- 5.4 ft
- Break depth
- 0 ft
- Power
- 1 kW/m
- Water
- 59°F · 3/2 fullsuit
Updated Aug 25, 6:42 PM PDT · 2 swell trains · how this is calculated
How Zmudowski State Beach is breaking right now
Solved in your browser from this spot’s seafloor and current swell
What the seafloor does to this wave
A cut straight out from Zmudowski State Beach, solved on the real seafloor at this hour’s swell and tide.
Why Zmudowski State Beach looks like this right now
The numbers above, and what each one is actually doing to the wave.
Two swells at once
1.6 ft at 5s from the W carrying 82% of the energy, plus 0.7 ft at 15s from the SW (18%).
The shorter, steeper train is carrying most of the energy here, so expect a choppier, less organised lineup than the longest period in the list would suggest on its own. Why period matters more than height →
The seafloor is neutral here
Kr 0.93 · 73% of modelled rays break.
Energy arrives roughly as it left deep water: this bottom neither concentrates the swell nor fans it out, so what the buoy sees is close to what you get. Why two breaks a mile apart differ →
The tide has drowned the bank
5.4 ft of tide over it.
There's now too much water above the bank for the swell to trip on it, so the waves roll straight over unbroken and only the shorebreak works. This is the case a size-only rating cannot see. the swell is still out there, the spot just isn't using it. How the tide moves the break →
Wind is cross-shore
8 mph from the SSE, against a shoreline facing 248°.
Running across the face rather than into or against it. Less destructive than a straight onshore, but it puts a texture on the wall and can make the peak harder to read.
Zmudowski State Beach surf forecast, next 6 days
Building — ~3.1 ft short-period windswell from the W filling in Thu evening (+2.0 d, high confidence)
| Day | Surf | Best window | Swell | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-2 ft | 6amFair-Good | 0.9 ft at 14s WSW | 3 mph cross-shore | Low 0.0 ft 4amHigh 4.2 ft 11amLow 2.5 ft 3pmHigh 5.8 ft 9pm | |
| 2-3 ft | 6am to 7amFair-Good | 1.1 ft at 12s WSW | 1 mph cross-shore | Low 0.0 ft 4amHigh 4.4 ft 11amLow 2.3 ft 4pmHigh 5.7 ft 10pm | |
| 1-2 ft | 10am to 2pmFair-Good | 1.0 ft at 11s WSW | 5 mph onshore | Low 0.2 ft 5amHigh 4.7 ft 11amLow 2.0 ft 5pmHigh 5.5 ft 11pm | |
| 2-3 ft | 11amFair-Good | 1.5 ft at 6s W | 6 mph onshore | Low 0.5 ft 5amHigh 4.9 ft 12pmLow 1.7 ft 6pmHigh 5.1 ft 11pm | |
| 2 ft | 11amFair-Good | 1.6 ft at 6s W | 6 mph onshore | Low 0.9 ft 6amHigh 5.2 ft 12pmLow 1.4 ft 6pm | |
| 1-2 ft | 8amPoor-Fair | 1.3 ft at 6s W | 3 mph onshore | High 4.7 ft 12amLow 1.4 ft 6amHigh 5.4 ft 1pmLow 1.2 ft 7pm |
Daylight hours only. The best window is the run of hours the model rates highest that day.
How Zmudowski State Beach works
Where the bay turns and starts facing west. Steeper and heavier than the north-shore beaches, almost always empty, and it holds real size.
- Bottom
- sand (steep, powerful)
- Best tide
- low to mid
- Best swell
- SW–W
- Suits
- intermediate-expert
Common questions about Zmudowski State Beach
- What is the best tide for Zmudowski State Beach?
- Zmudowski State Beach works best on low to mid tide. Tide matters because depth is what trips a wave: as the water fills in, the break slides shoreward onto a different part of the bottom, and over a shallow bank enough water stops it breaking at all. Our forecast solves each hour at that hour's real water level rather than assuming one.
- What swell direction is best for Zmudowski State Beach?
- SW–W suits Zmudowski State Beach best. The direction that matters is the one at the break, not the one on the buoy: the seafloor bends swell on its way in, so a spot can work on an angle the open coast is missing. We model that bending for each break rather than reporting the offshore direction.
- Is Zmudowski State Beach good for beginners?
- Zmudowski State Beach suits intermediate-expert surfers, over sand. That is the wave this bottom makes on an average day, and it moves: the same break is a different proposition on a bigger swell or a different tide, so read the day's forecast rather than the label.
- What is the bottom like at Zmudowski State Beach?
- sand (steep, powerful). It is the reason this break behaves the way it does: the shape of the seabed decides where the swell focuses, where it trips, and whether it spills or pitches. We model Zmudowski State Beach on real 10-foot bathymetry instead of treating the seafloor as a slope.
Nearby breaks
- Moss Landing State Beach surf report · 2-3 ft
- Marina State Beach surf report · 2 ft
- Asilomar State Beach surf report · 2-3 ft
- Carmel Beach surf report · 2 ft
- Monastery Beach surf report · 2 ft