Santa Cruz County, California
Get out early for the best of it — 4-5ft waves on SSW swell at 10s and barely a breath of wind.
Best window·Thursday 7AM–10AM·3-4ft·Good
Poor - Fair today — get one free email when Davenport Landing turns Good.
Here's how the next 5 days are shaping up at Davenport Landing, Santa Cruz County, California. Each day is rated based on breaking wave height, swell period, and wind — updated hourly from the latest NOAA GFS run.
Wed, Jul 22: 4–5ft, 10s period, rated Fair - Good. Get out early for the best of it — 4-5ft waves on SSW swell at 10s and barely a breath of wind. It gets a bit messier later in the day.
Thu, Jul 23: 3–4+ft, 14s period, rated Good. Get out early for the best of it — 3-4ft waves on SSW swell at 14s and 9mph NW winds. The NW wind kicks in by afternoon — 21mph and poor by then.
Fri, Jul 24: 3–4ft, 23s period, rated Good. The sweet spot is around midday — 3-4ft waves, 9mph from the NW, good conditions. Morning is a bit bumpy but things clean up by late morning. Don't wait too long — the wind comes back up after lunch.
Sat, Jul 25: 2–3+ft, 22s period, rated Poor - Fair. First light looks cleanest — 2-3+ft on S swell at 12s with 8mph from the NNW. Onshore flow builds through the day to 14mph, bringing conditions down to poor.
Sun, Jul 26: 3–4+ft, 20s period, rated Fair - Good. First light looks cleanest — 3-4ft on SSW swell at 16s with 7mph NNW winds. Wind fills in through the day, pushing up to 14mph from the NW and dropping conditions to poor.
Check Davenport Landing from the lineup
Forecasts, surf alerts, and live conditions in the Swell Intel iPhone app.
Davenport Landing is a small cove beach break just north of the town of Davenport, with a sheltering headland that offers some protection from the prevailing NW wind. The cove sand and rock bottom produces short but fun lefts and rights on W-NW swells and it is one of the more accessible North Coast spots. Works across a wide range of swell sizes.
Wave heights shown are breaking wave heights — the actual rideable wave size at this spot.
The current wave height at Davenport Landing is 3-4ft with a 8.15s swell period. Wind is WNW at 11mph and conditions are rated Poor - Fair. The forecast updates hourly so you can plan your session around the cleanest windows.
The current breaking wave height at Davenport Landing is 3-4ft, produced by a 4.5ft SSW primary swell at 8s, a 2.4ft SSW secondary swell at 15s, a 1ft WNW tertiary swell at 12s, a 1ft NW wind swell swell at 8s. Breaking wave height is the actual rideable wave size at the shore — calculated from offshore swell data using this spot's coastal bathymetry — not the raw buoy reading.
Based on the current 5-day forecast, the best window to surf Davenport Landing is Thursday from 7 AM to 10 AM with 4ft waves, a 14.3s swell period, and conditions rated Good. Check the hourly forecast for updates as conditions can shift.
Davenport Landing works best with a WNW swell and NE winds. Offshore winds groom the face of the wave, while onshore winds turn it sloppy. Cross-offshore conditions usually produce the cleanest shape.
Tide plays a big role at Davenport Landing. Mid tide works for most beach breaks, while reef and point breaks often prefer higher or lower stages. Use the tide chart above to line up your session with the swell peak.
Davenport Landing is a beach with a sand bottom, suited to intermediate surfers. Davenport Landing is a small cove beach break just north of the town of Davenport, with a sheltering headland that offers some protection from the prevailing NW wind. The cove sand and rock bottom produces short but fun lefts and rights on W-NW swells and it is one of the more accessible North Coast spots. Works across a wide range of swell sizes.
The prime season at Davenport Landing is fall, when swell direction, wind patterns, and water temps line up most consistently. Outside the peak season you can still score, but you'll need to watch the forecast closely for the right windows.
Common hazards at Davenport Landing include rocks, cold water, rip currents, sharks. Always check conditions before paddling out, respect local etiquette, and never surf alone if you're unfamiliar with the break.
Our Davenport Landing forecast uses NOAA GFS and other weather models combined with spot-specific bathymetry to calculate breaking wave heights. Short-range (1-3 day) forecasts are most reliable; extended forecasts show general trends. We also verify our offshore swell predictions against NOAA buoy measurements daily — see our accuracy page for those swell-verification metrics (buoys measure open-water swell, not breaking surf size).
