Santa Cruz County, California
Get out early for the best of it — 4-5ft waves on SSW swell at 10s and glassy conditions.
Best window·Sunday 11AM–2PM·4-5ft·Good
Very Poor today — get one free email when Four Mile Beach turns Good.
Here's how the next 5 days are shaping up at Four Mile Beach, 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 glassy conditions. Conditions go downhill through the afternoon.
Thu, Jul 23: 3–4+ft, 14s period, rated Good. Dawn patrol is the move — 3-4+ft on SSW swell at 14s with light NW winds. The NW wind kicks in by afternoon — 17mph and very poor by then.
Fri, Jul 24: 3–4+ft, 23s period, rated Fair - Good. Get out early for the best of it — 3-4ft waves on S swell at 13s and light NW winds. Wind fills in through the day, pushing up to 10mph from the WNW and dropping conditions to fair.
Sat, Jul 25: 3–4ft, 22s period, rated Poor - Fair. Early morning is your best window — 3-4ft waves on S swell at 12s with gentle NNW breeze. Wind fills in through the day, pushing up to 9mph from the WNW and dropping conditions to poor - fair.
Sun, Jul 26: 4–5ft, 20s period, rated Fair - Good. Skip the dawn patrol — 3-4+ft and fair - good early on. Afternoon shapes up better with 4-5ft and poor conditions.
Check Four Mile Beach from the lineup
Forecasts, surf alerts, and live conditions in the Swell Intel iPhone app.
Four Mile is a legendary right-hand point/reef about four miles north of Santa Cruz, inside Wilder Ranch State Park. On clean WNW swells it produces long, fast, wrapping walls over a cobblestone-and-reef bottom, drawing crowds of experienced surfers up the coast. A long walk from the highway pullout and a steep trail keep the casual crowd out but not the locals.
Wave heights shown are breaking wave heights — the actual rideable wave size at this spot.
The current wave height at Four Mile Beach is 3-4ft with a 8.05s swell period. Wind is WNW at 11mph and conditions are rated Very Poor. The forecast updates hourly so you can plan your session around the cleanest windows.
The current breaking wave height at Four Mile Beach is 3-4ft, produced by a 3.8ft SSW primary swell at 8s, a 2.1ft SSW secondary swell at 15s, a 1.1ft WNW tertiary swell at 12s, a 1.3ft WNW 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 Four Mile Beach is Sunday from 11 AM to 2 PM with 4ft waves, a 19.05s swell period, and conditions rated Good. Check the hourly forecast for updates as conditions can shift.
Four Mile Beach 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 Four Mile Beach. 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.
Four Mile Beach is a point with a reef bottom, suited to advanced surfers. Four Mile is a legendary right-hand point/reef about four miles north of Santa Cruz, inside Wilder Ranch State Park. On clean WNW swells it produces long, fast, wrapping walls over a cobblestone-and-reef bottom, drawing crowds of experienced surfers up the coast. A long walk from the highway pullout and a steep trail keep the casual crowd out but not the locals.
The prime season at Four Mile Beach is winter, 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 Four Mile Beach include rocks, reef, cold water, localism, sharks. Always check conditions before paddling out, respect local etiquette, and never surf alone if you're unfamiliar with the break.
Our Four Mile Beach 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).
