Depressions Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Santa Barbara, USA)

Forecast
- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
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Weather State
Spot Information

Depressions Surf Guide

Depressions in Santa Barbara is a reasonably exposed beach break that has pretty consitent surf and can work at any time of the year. Offshore winds blow from the northeast. Waves just as likely from local windswells as from distant groundswells and the optimum swell angle is from the west southwest. Waves at the beach break both left and right. Best around mid tide. Sometimes crowded. Take care of the strong rips here.

Depressions Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach	2	fairly consistent	15.0°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Depressions:

The best conditions reported for surf at Depressions occur when a West-southwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Northeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Depressions (for consistent clean waves)?

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Depressions with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of January. Clean surfable waves are typically found 24% of the time in January while 45% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 31% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

24%

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

45%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

31%

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Depressions Location Map

Interactive Depressions surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Depressions is Point Mugu Nas Airport (NTD) in USA, 74 km (46 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Depressions is Vandenberg Afb (Lompoc) Airport (VBG), also in USA, 75 km (47 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Depressions Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 16:43 Local Time

m, °C	Tuesday 05
ft, °F	2PM	5PM	8PM	11PM
Wave (m)	WNW	WNW	WNW	SW
Period (s)	13	5	5	15
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- on	cross- on	cross	cross- off

Tides at Depressions

Current tide and informaton

For Isla Vista, 1 km from Depressions.

Next High Water: 11:56pm | 1.91m

Next Low Water: 05:15pm | 1.3m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Depressions Sea Temperature

The water temperature (15.0 °C) at Depressions is quite cool. If the sun shines as we have forecast, it should feel warm enough to surf in a good spring wetsuit. Effective windchill factor of (18.0 °C) will make the air and water feel about the same temperature.

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit.

Current Temp*: 15.0°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite