Pacific City Surf Forecast
North Oregon Coast, OR · Dory-boat beach peaks in the lee of Cape Kiwanda.
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Pacific City Spot Guide
Best swell
Ideal size
Best wind
The wave
Local knowledge
Cape Kiwanda shelters Pacific City from the northwest wind that trashes most of the coast, so its peaks stay rideable when everywhere else is foam. Add the giant sand dune, the dory fleet launching straight off the beach and a brewery at the parking lot, and you get Oregon's most amiable surf day.
Nearby spots
- Otter Rock 32 mi · Central Oregon Coast
- Seaside Cove 54 mi · North Oregon Coast
FAQ
What swell direction works best at Pacific City?
W swell hits Pacific City straight on. The spot picks up anything arriving from SSW (195°) through NNW (330°); swell from outside that window is blocked by the coastline.
What wind is best at Pacific City?
E wind blows offshore and grooms the surf. W wind is straight onshore and chops it up; light wind under ~5 kn is fine from any direction.
When is the best time of year to surf Pacific City?
Fall through winter (October-March), when North Pacific storms send consistent NW groundswell. Early fall usually has the best swell-to-conditions ratio; summer is the small season.
What's the best tide at Pacific City?
Mid. Tide predictions for the spot's NOAA station are in the forecast above.
Is Pacific City good for beginners?
Yes — the cape's wind shadow makes this Oregon's most learnable wave.
How warm is the water at Pacific City?
Roughly 47°F at its late-winter coldest to about 58°F in late summer. In practice that means a hooded 4/3 or 5/4 in winter and a 3/2 in summer. The forecast above shows the current water temperature.
How far out is this forecast reliable?
The wave model has real skill to about 10 days, and we cut the chart there instead of padding it with guesses. Days 1-3 are solid, 4-7 useful, 8-10 a trend heads-up - and we publish our measured error against NOAA buoys, updated continuously.
Forecast from TrueSwell's own physics-based wave model (exposure → refraction → breaking, every swell train separately), built on public NOAA and Open-Meteo data and scored daily against NDBC buoy observations. How the model works →