Surf Forecast  Montara State Beach

Montara State Beach surfspot characteristics

More about Montara State Beach surfspot

Powerful, consistent beachbreak, good during smaller, clean W swells; offshore on an E wind. Sometimes crowded when the Half Moon Bay crew make the trip. Montara can handle a bit of S wind and larger, peaky swells, when getting out can present a problem.

General: Montara Beach is less than a mile of open beach that faces directly into the Gulf of Alaska and takes a constant hammering from swell, wind, tide, fog and everything else the Pacific Ocean can throw. The good news is that the S winds that accompany fog and/or rain in this region blow straight offshore at Montara, so on those summer days when San Francisco's beachbreaks are gray, blown-out and infinitely uninviting, Montara can be smooth and sweet, albeit a little chilly.</br></br>During the winter, Montara is constantly shape-shifting and the bottom is always in a state of flux from the swell and tide. Montara on a big swell can be as spectacular as closed-out Pipeline. When the ocean mellows a bit, Montara ranges from deadly to excellent, depending on the bottom contour and swell direction. Montara is surfed mostly by beginners and intermediate surfers on the smaller windswell days. And on a sunny day in the fall or winter, sometimes the surf can be epic. In the summer, S and W swells dribble in at a point on the south end and along the beach. There's usually something to ride at Montara. Tides: Depends on sandbars. On small days, low is best. Size: Waist high-overhead Wind: E, SE, S Swell: W, NW, W, SW Bottom: Shifting sand. Paddling: Depends on size but generally a lot of paddling, especially when overhead. Spot Rating: Fun.

Beginner-Advanced

There's parking in the dirt on the north end and in the parking lot on the south end. For some reason, it's legal for beach-goers to park in the big Chart House lot, just north of the restaurant.

January-December

Crowd Factor: Lonely. Local Vibe: On the best peaks, sure.

Parking is free. Nasty rip currents and undertow are drawbacks.

Mostly clean.

Major poundings when it's big. The occasional headless sea lion washed up on the beach suggests other hazards. There is a very high beachgoer-to-drowning ratio here.