Playa del Borrego • Surf Spot Statistics

Best Surf Season (November - February)

Playa del Borrego finds its stride when the North Pacific storm track wakes up and the seasonal offshore wind machine turns on. From November through February, the percentage of ideal wind sits at 71-75 percent, the highest of the year. Average wave heights hover around 2.6ft (0.8m), but average periods stay in the long-period range of 12.6-13.1s, meaning the surf runs are remarkably clean and well organized for their size. Swell direction during this window is dominated by W, WNW, WSW, and SW energy - not every pulse points perfectly into the southwest-facing beach, but the WSW and SW windows make the most of the exposed orientation.

Fair Surf Season (March, April, October)

These transition months offer a mixed bag of increasing swell direction quality and decreasing wind reliability. March and April see the swell angle shift more toward WSW and SW, with April peaking at nearly 90 percent of the wave energy coming from the optimal S/SSW/SW/WSW quadrant. However, the ideal wind percentage drops to 55 percent in March and 46 percent in April as afternoon sea breezes become more regular. October is the reverse - the wind quality climbs back to 57 percent while the swell remains dominated by SW and SSW pulses. These months reward surfers who time the morning offshore windows.

Low Surf Season (May - September)

Summer brings the most optimal swell directions - SSW and SW dominate with more than 95 percent of the total energy - but the trade-off is a much weaker wind regime. May and June represent the lowest point of the year, with ideal wind dropping to just 35 percent and 27 percent respectively. The Pacific high-pressure system builds over the eastern Pacific, driving persistent onshore and cross-shore flow, and the rainy season adds moisture and storminess through July and September. Tropical cyclones can occasionally send pulsey, long-period southern hemi swells and even hurricane swells, but the quality is highly dependent on the wind lining up. For dependable, clean surf, this is the quiet period.