Longboard-friendly waves in Imperial Beach

IB is one of San Diego's best south swell receivers thanks to its SW-facing exposure at 250 degrees. Summer south and SSW swells in the 3-6 ft range are the bread and butter—the beach break produces fun, peaky waves with occasional long lefts along the pier. Winter NW swells mostly miss IB or arrive with too much west in them, producing closeouts. The sandbar near the pier's south side often has the best-shaped peaks. On overhead south swells, IB can produce surprisingly powerful waves that catch visitors off guard.

IB comes alive on clean south or SSW swells in the 3-5 ft range during summer, ideally with light offshore winds out of the east or northeast. Early morning glass before the sea breeze sets in around noon is the daily window. The best months are June through September when Southern Hemisphere swells are consistent. A mid to high tide cleans up the shore break and opens up more workable faces. The pier creates a slight refraction that can organize the swell into more defined peaks on its south side.

The pier creates a focused sandbar that produces powerful, wedging peaks on both sides. The north side tends to produce hollow lefts that barrel on bigger days, while the south side offers more workable rights. The wave here is heavier than most San Diego beach breaks due to the jetty effect and the shallow sandbars the pier structure creates. On solid south or southwest swells, IB Pier can produce legitimately heavy barrels that rival anywhere in the county.

IB Pier comes alive on south and southwest swells in the 4-8 foot range, which is unusual for San Diego since most spots favor west-northwest energy. Light offshore winds from the east or northeast hold the faces open on the pier peaks. A medium incoming tide gives the best shape -- too low and it gets dangerously shallow on the inside.