Staying Home Sucks, home
Morro Rock, Morro Bay, CA as seen from the Cayucos Pier, Cayucos, CA 29 July 2013
Mouse Rock. Photo: Mike Baird from Morro Bay, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Mouse Rock

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

11Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Thu 5: 4 ft swell at 6 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 24 out of 100

Swell
6 ft14 smushy
Energy
1,095kJ
Wind
WSW 7 kn
Temp
17°C

Wed 4 · 0 out of 100

Swell
7 ft10 ssoft
Energy
960kJ
Wind
ENE 6 kn
Temp
19°C

Thu 5 · 31 out of 100

Swell
4 ft6 smushy
Energy
121kJ
Wind
NW 4 kn
Temp
22°C

Fri 6 · 0 out of 100

Swell
6 ft9 ssoft
Energy
485kJ
Wind
NE 6 kn
Temp
23°C

Sat 7 · 0 out of 100

Swell
9 ft12 ssoft
Energy
1,965kJ
Wind
NE 11 kn
Temp
26°C

Sun 8 · 0 out of 100

Swell
7 ft11 ssoft
Energy
891kJ
Wind
NE 5 kn
Temp
24°C

Mon 9 · 0 out of 100

Swell
8 ft11 ssoft
Energy
1,324kJ
Wind
NE 3 kn
Temp
24°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 324, poor
  2. Wed 40, too big
  3. Thu 531, poor
  4. Fri 60, too big
  5. Sat 70, too big
  6. Sun 80, too big
  7. Mon 90, too big
  8. Tue 100, too big
  9. Wed 110, too big

The spot in six facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 4–14 ftof swell
  • Water 15 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
  • Best in Oct3 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

Mouse Rock does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Mouse Rock, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Tue 3Nov24, poor6 ft14 smushy6 ft at break (est.)1,095kJwind from the west-south-west, 7 knots17°C
Wed 4Nov0, too big7 ft10 ssoft7 ft at break (est.)960kJwind from the east-north-east, 6 knots19°C
Thu 5Nov31, poor4 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.)121kJwind from the north-west, 4 knots22°C
Fri 6Nov0, too big6 ft9 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)485kJwind from the north-east, 6 knots23°C
Sat 7Nov0, too big9 ft12 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)1,965kJwind from the north-east, 11 knots26°C
Sun 8Nov0, too big7 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)891kJwind from the north-east, 5 knots24°C
Mon 9Nov0, too big8 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)1,324kJwind from the north-east, 3 knots24°C
Tue 10Nov0, too big8 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)1,024kJwind from the north-east, 7 knots24°C
Wed 11Nov0, too big8 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)1,259kJwind from the west-south-west, 1 knot20°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

  • Tue 3 NovHigh 05:52 +0.6 mLow 11:42 −0.3 mHigh 17:20 +0.5 mLow 23:51 −0.8 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 06:27 +0.7 mLow 12:41 −0.5 mHigh 18:31 +0.5 m
  • Thu 5 NovLow 00:36 −0.6 mHigh 07:01 +0.8 mLow 13:32 −0.7 mHigh 19:34 +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 beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

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

Photos of Mouse Rock

Cayucos, CA 93430, USA - panoramio
Photo: John Nevill, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Mouse Rock

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

The spot faces SW (220°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (40°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 4–14 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 750 m out (1 in 76). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 12°C in May, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 16°C in September, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually October, with about 3 good days in 7; in March and April, about 1. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Cayucos, 1.3 km away (2 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots.

Water about 15°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$1,200–US$2,170 each

about US$1,200–US$2,170 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to SBA, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$255–US$530
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$154–US$255
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$302–US$503
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$637
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$148–US$242
Totalabout US$1,200–US$2,170

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

Where to stay: 3 towns

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Cayucos

2 min by car · 19 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 19 places to stay in Cayucos · Booking.com

About Cayucos 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 9h 15m

About 9h 15m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → SBA, direct, then 2h 50m by road

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

Saved: this link opens the same trip

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.