Staying Home Sucks, home
Tide pools at Shelter Cove, California
Near Deadman's. Photo: Frank Schulenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Deadman's

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

69Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Mon 2: 7 ft swell at 15 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 75 out of 100

Swell
7 ft15 scrumbling
Energy
2,131kJ
Wind
S 3 kn
Temp
14°C

Tue 3 · 54 out of 100

Swell
7 ft13 scrumbling
Energy
1,336kJ
Wind
ESE 8 kn
Temp
15°C

Wed 4 · 60 out of 100

Swell
7 ft9 ssoft
Energy
803kJ
Wind
N 1 kn
Temp
16°C

Thu 5 · 46 out of 100

Swell
6 ft10 ssoft
Energy
745kJ
Wind
NW 10 kn
Temp
18°C

Fri 6 · 72 out of 100

Swell
10 ft12 ssoft
Energy
2,460kJ
Wind
NE 8 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 73 out of 100

Swell
10 ft11 ssoft
Energy
2,155kJ
Wind
SW 2 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 73 out of 100

Swell
8 ft11 ssoft
Energy
1,346kJ
Wind
NW 2 kn
Temp
16°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 125, too small
  2. Mon 275, good
  3. Tue 354, fair
  4. Wed 460, good
  5. Thu 546, fair
  6. Fri 672, good
  7. Sat 773, good
  8. Sun 873, good
  9. Mon 977, good
  10. Tue 1014, poor

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 13 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Deadman's, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov25, too small3 ft13 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)264kJwind from the north-north-east, 5 knots, offshore15°C
Mon 2Nov75, good7 ft15 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)2,131kJwind from the south, 3 knots14°C
Tue 3Nov54, fair7 ft13 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)1,336kJwind from the east-south-east, 8 knots15°C
Wed 4Nov60, good7 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)803kJwind from the north, 1 knot, offshore16°C
Thu 5Nov46, fair6 ft10 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)745kJwind from the north-west, 10 knots18°C
Fri 6Nov72, good10 ft12 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)2,460kJwind from the north-east, 8 knots, offshore19°C
Sat 7Nov73, good10 ft11 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)2,155kJwind from the south-west, 2 knots18°C
Sun 8Nov73, good8 ft11 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)1,346kJwind from the north-west, 2 knots16°C
Mon 9Nov77, good9 ft10 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)1,685kJwind from the north-north-west, 1 knot, offshore16°C
Tue 10Nov14, poor6 ft10 smushy2 ft at break (est.)716kJwind from the south-south-east, 20 knots15°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Sun 1 NovHigh 04:58 +0.5 mLow 09:52 −0.0 mHigh 15:28 +0.7 mLow 22:47 −1.1 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 05:53 +0.6 mLow 11:20 −0.2 mHigh 16:53 +0.6 mLow 23:48 −1.0 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 06:42 +0.7 mLow 12:36 −0.4 mHigh 18:18 +0.5 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Deadman's

Rocky beach at Shelter Cove, California
Near Deadman's, 1 km away. Photo: Frank Schulenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

4 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Deadman's

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces S (199°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (19°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 400 m out (1 in 41). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 11°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 13°C in August, its warmest (4/3 wetsuit and boots). The town to stay in is Shelter Cove, 1.5 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots.

Water about 13°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,210–US$2,180 each

about US$1,210–US$2,180 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to ACV, estimated from distance and season, changing at DEN, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$261–US$543
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$154–US$255
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$301–US$502
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$636
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$147–US$241
Totalabout US$1,210–US$2,180

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Shelter Cove

Closest

Shelter Cove

3 min by car · 13 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 13 places to stay in Shelter Cove · Booking.com

About Shelter Cove its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$114 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 11h 50m

About 11h 50m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → ACV, changing at Denver International Airport (DEN), then 2h 10m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.