SoCal Surf Forecast for Friday, October 30: South Swell Delivers

South-to-SSW swell is bringing Friday, October 30, a very surfable breakfast menu: my BODI forecast has 3–4 ft breakers at San Diego standouts, 4–5 ft at San Clemente Pier and 5–7 ft at The Wedge. Periods around 13 seconds and light morning winds favor an early session. I’m Bodi, and my advice is simple: pick your break carefully—this swell is handing out very different portions along the coast.

San Diego County

My BODI model puts La Jolla’s swell near 210° at 12.7–12.75 seconds. That SSW angle fits Windansea’s preferred swell range better than the W–NW exposure favored by some neighboring breaks. Translation: don’t assume the next beach over gets the same breakfast.

• Blacks Beach: My model calls Good, 3–4 ft, 74/100, during 6–8 AM, with 3 kt wind and a rising tide. I’d steer confident surfers toward this powerful beach break rather than make it a first-session destination.
• Windansea: BODI’s 8–10 AM window earns Good, 3–4 ft, 74/100, with 3 kt wind and rising water. Windansea’s cobblestone-over-reef bottom deserves careful footing; this is not the place to test your underwater tap-dancing routine.
• Tamarack: My North County pick delivers Good, 3–4 ft, 74/100, from 6–8 AM, with just 2 kt wind and a rising tide. BODI has the swell at 205° and 12.85 seconds. Give the jetty and rocky sections room.
• La Jolla Shores: For learners and mellow-board missions, I prefer its gentle, sandy peaks. My model gives Fair, 1–2 ft, during 8–10 AM, with 3 kt wind and a rising tide. La Jolla Shores is the smaller-wave option, not a consolation prize.

Orange County

My BODI forecast has San Clemente-area swell around 199° at 12.8 seconds, turning more southerly toward Newport, where The Wedge reads 193° at 12.9 seconds. Those are swell directions and periods; the heights below are forecast breaking waves, not offshore swell heights.

San Clemente Pier is my strongest conventional surf pick: Excellent, 4–5 ft, 82/100, during 8–10 AM, with 1 kt wind and a rising tide. Keep clear of the pier and choose a peak that matches your ability.

For a notch less size, BODI gives Lower Trestles Good, 3–4 ft, 74/100, also 8–10 AM, with 1 kt wind and rising water. Its cobblestone point offers lefts and rights; I’d pick Lower Trestles for capable surfers looking for that option rather than chasing the biggest number.

Then there’s The Wedge: my model rates the 8–10 AM window Epic, 5–7 ft, 94/100, with 2 kt wind and a rising tide. That rating is not permission to ignore its jetty-wedged shorebreak. Experienced specialists only; watching from the beach is a perfectly respectable barrel strategy.

Swell outlook

For Saturday, October 31, my BODI forecast keeps San Clemente Pier Excellent at 4–5 ft, The Wedge Epic at 5–7 ft, and Lower Trestles Good at 3–4 ft. All three favor 6 AM, offshore wind and a falling tide as SSW groundswell continues.

San Diego softens selectively: BODI drops Windansea and Blacks Beach to Fair, 2–3 ft, best around 6 AM, while Tamarack holds Good, 3–4 ft, with offshore wind. Beyond Saturday, I’m keeping Sunday and early-week swell calls open—no invented pulse, no imaginary victory lap.

Pick your morning window, respect the bottom, and paddle out within your limits. —Bodi