San Clemente · Orange County · California
Cotton's Point Surf Report & Forecast, San Clemente, CA
Cotton's Point, San Clemente, California: 3 ft, waist to chest high, at 12 pm PST on Monday, Nov 9, rated Fair. The main swell is 1.4 ft at 16 seconds from the south-southwest, with a 4 mph onshore wind from the west. Water is about 74°F, so a rashguard is enough; the next low tide is 0.1 ft at 3:22 pm.
3 ft
waist to chest high · occasional 4 ft
- Swell
- 1.4 ft · 16 s · SSWplus 0.5 ft · 15 s · WSW
- Wind
- 4 mph (W)onshore
- Tide
- 3.1 ft fallinglow 0.1 ft at 3:22 pm
- Water
- 74°Frashguard
- Air
- 76°Ffeels like 75°F
- Sun
- rise 6:16 amset 4:52 pm
Cotton's Point surf today and tomorrow
Best-rated hour today at Cotton's Point: 5 pm, Fair, on a falling low tide.
Blue band: surf face height from the low end to set waves; dotted: occasional larger sets. Grey line: tide, in feet on the right scale. Colour strip: the hourly rating. Arrows: wind direction and strength, teal when offshore, orange when onshore.
Best-rated hour tomorrow at Cotton's Point: 5 pm, Fair, on a falling low tide.
Hour by hour as a table, today and tomorrow
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 2–3 ft | Poor | 5 mph offshore (ENE) | 5.6 ft |
| 7 am | 2–3 ft | Poor | 4 mph offshore (ENE) | 6.5 ft |
| 8 am | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | calm | 6.9 ft |
| 9 am | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | calm | 6.7 ft |
| 10 am | 3 ft | Fair | 4 mph onshore (W) | 5.9 ft |
| 11 am | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | 6 mph onshore (W) | 4.6 ft |
| 12 pmnow | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | 7 mph onshore (W) | 3.1 ft |
| 1 pm | 3 ft | Fair | 8 mph cross-shore (W), gusts 13 | 1.7 ft |
| 2 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 8 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 13 | 0.6 ft |
| 3 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 8 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 0.1 ft |
| 4 pm | 3 ft | Fair | 8 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 0.2 ft |
| 5 pm | 3–4 ft | Fair | 7 mph cross-shore (NW), gusts 12 | 0.9 ft |
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | calm | 5.2 ft |
| 7 am | 2–3 ft | Poor | calm | 6.1 ft |
| 8 am | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | calm | 6.6 ft |
| 9 am | 2–3 ft | Poor | calm | 6.7 ft |
| 10 am | 2–3 ft | Fair | calm | 6.2 ft |
| 11 am | 2–3 ft | Poor to Fair | 5 mph onshore (W) | 5.2 ft |
| 12 pm | 2–3 ft | Poor | 6 mph onshore (W), gusts 11 | 3.8 ft |
| 1 pm | 2–3 ft | Poor | 7 mph onshore (W) | 2.3 ft |
| 2 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 7 mph onshore (W), gusts 12 | 1.1 ft |
| 3 pm | 3 ft | Poor | 7 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 12 | 0.3 ft |
| 4 pm | 3 ft | Poor to Fair | 7 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 0.0 ft |
| 5 pm | 3 ft | Fair | 6 mph cross-shore (NW) | 0.4 ft |
Cotton's Point waves today: sets, lulls and how they break
At 12 pm, sets at Cotton's Point arrive about every 5 minutes with about 4 waves each, and the waves are mostly collapsing and crumbly.
- Set waves
- about 3.2 ft faces
- Waves per set
- about 4
- Sets
- every 5 minutes or so, each lasting about 44 s
- Lulls
- about 287 s between breaking waves
- How they break
- Collapsingwhich means the face drops all at once close to the beach
- Shape
- Crumblywhich means whitewater rolls gently down the face
- Breaking
- 24% of waves stand up and break where surfers sitThe rest roll through.
- Along-shore current
- light, about 0.2 mphThis is not a rip current forecast. For rip current risk, see the National Weather Service.
Cotton's Point surf this weekend and the next 10 days
Next 8 days at Cotton's Point: the biggest day is Sunday, Nov 15 at 4–8 ft, and the best-rated day is Sunday, Nov 15 (Great). This weekend: Saturday, Nov 14, 5–6 ft and Great; Sunday, Nov 15, 4–8 ft and Great.
Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24
Days 11–16 for Cotton's Point are in the Current app with a Premium subscription.
Bars: surf face height from the low end to set waves, by day. Colour strip: the day's best rating. Arrows: main swell direction. Shaded: this weekend.
The 10-day forecast as a table, with swell and wind
| Day | Surf | Rating | Main swell | Wind am | Wind pm | Best time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | 2–4 ft | Fair | 1.4 ft · 16 s · SSW | calm | 8 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 13 | 5 pm |
| Tue, Nov 10 | 2–3 ft | Fair | 1.4 ft · 15 s · SSW | calm | 7 mph onshore (W), gusts 12 | 5 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | 2–3 ft | Poor | 1.4 ft · 14 s · SSW | calm | 7 mph onshore (W), gusts 13 | 5 pm |
| Thu, Nov 12 | 2–4 ft | Fair | 1.5 ft · 13 s · WSW | calm | 5 mph onshore (WSW) | 10 am |
| Fri, Nov 13 | 3–6 ft | Good | 1.6 ft · 15 s · W | 8 mph cross-shore (E) | 8 mph onshore (SW) | 9 am |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 5–6 ft | Great | 2.3 ft · 14 s · W | calm | 10 mph onshore (W) | 7 am |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 4–8 ft | Great | 2.5 ft · 18 s · W | 5 mph offshore (E) | 5 mph onshore (SSW) | 10 am |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 3–7 ft | Good | 1.7 ft · 8 s · WSW | 6 mph cross-shore (NW) | 10 mph onshore (WSW), gusts 17 | 7 am |
Cotton's Point tide chart and tide times
Tides at Cotton's Point today, Monday, Nov 9: low 2.5 ft at 1:48 am, high 6.9 ft at 8:10 am, low 0.1 ft at 3:22 pm and high 4.6 ft at 9:47 pm. At 12 pm the tide is 3.1 ft and falling.
Cotton's Point tide chart, November 2026
| Day | Tides |
|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | Low 2.5 ft at 1:48 amHigh 6.9 ft at 8:10 amLow 0.1 ft at 3:22 pmHigh 4.6 ft at 9:47 pm |
| Tue, Nov 10 | Low 2.8 ft at 2:21 amHigh 6.8 ft at 8:38 amLow 0.0 ft at 3:55 pmHigh 4.3 ft at 10:19 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | Low 2.9 ft at 2:48 amHigh 6.3 ft at 9:03 amLow 0.3 ft at 4:32 pmHigh 3.8 ft at 11:16 pm |
| Thu, Nov 12 | Low 3.2 ft at 2:58 amHigh 6.2 ft at 9:36 amLow 0.7 ft at 5:15 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | High 3.9 ft at 12:19 amLow 3.5 ft at 3:19 amHigh 6.1 ft at 10:09 amLow 1.1 ft at 6:07 pm |
| Sat, Nov 14 | High 3.9 ft at 1:49 amLow 3.8 ft at 3:41 amHigh 5.7 ft at 10:49 amLow 1.3 ft at 7:07 pm |
| Sun, Nov 15 | High 5.2 ft at 11:38 amLow 1.3 ft at 8:04 pm |
| Mon, Nov 16 | High 4.2 ft at 4:27 amLow 4.0 ft at 7:14 amHigh 4.7 ft at 12:50 pmLow 1.4 ft at 8:59 pm |
| Tue, Nov 17 | High 4.5 ft at 4:45 amLow 3.7 ft at 9:41 amHigh 4.4 ft at 2:27 pm |
Tide predictions, not observations. Heights in feet above MLLW.
Cotton's Point water temperature
The water temperature at Cotton's Point is about 74°F on Monday, Nov 9. With the air feeling like 75°F and a 4 mph wind, a rashguard is enough. Over the next week the water stays between 73 and 75°F.
Water temperature is a forecast for the water at this spot, not a buoy reading. The wetsuit suggestion uses Billabong's wetsuit temperature scale, adjusted for air temperature and wind.
Surf spots near Cotton's Point
- Upper Trestles0.3 mi SSE · 2–3 ft · Good
- Lower Trestles0.6 mi SE · 3–4 ft · Good
- Middles1.0 mi SE · 3 ft · Fair
- Church1.3 mi ESE · 3–4 ft · Good
- San Clemente State Beach1.3 mi NNW · 3 ft · Good
- Calafia1.5 mi NNW · 3–4 ft · Great
Rated right now. The Current app animates the surf itself on a live map of the whole coast. See the app →
About Cotton's Point
Cotton's Point is a point break in San Clemente, Orange County, California, facing southwest. Also called Cottons, Cotton Point and Cypress Shores.
Follow Cotton's Point in the Current app
The first 10 days are free, and Premium adds days 11–16.
Forecasts are estimates. Never rely on them for safety. For rip current risk and beach hazards, check the National Weather Service. Forecasts from Current's novel physics simulation. No AI. No black boxes. Ocean and weather data: NOAA (U.S. government data). NOAA does not endorse this site.