Conditions
Waves in the morning. Wind after lunch.
Two desks, one page. Surf is height / wind / tide. Kite is the 1–6pm thermal and the sand north of the pier. We put numbers in the Thursday email. We do not invent them here overnight.
How to read it
A useful line is three things: wave height, wind (onshore wrecks it after lunch most summer days), tide (see the pier table). Late August is often 2–4 ft, cleaner early, sea breeze after noon. If the live report disagrees with a forecast, the live report wins.
Sources we actually use
Surfline or similar for the HB pier cam. NWS Los Angeles / Oxnard marine. CDIP / NOAA buoy when we cite a period. Windfinder for the kite forecast, iKitesurf / WeatherFlow at the pier, Windy as a second look. Typical kite fill: W–SW, mid-teens when it is on, gusts 3–5pm. Single digits at 2pm = walk the dog instead. This is not a launching clearance.
Afternoon kite
Zone: stay well north of the surf pack. Give launch/land a lane. 1–6pm is the thermal window locals talk about — not a guarantee every calendar day.
Shops and lessons
Jack’s Surfboards at 101 Main (the corner). Huntington Surf & Sport at the pier, plus a Bolsa-side shop. Ask them who is teaching this week; we are not a booking desk. More on the around town page.