Surf Forecasts:
Depressions surf forecast from 12 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 15 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 6s period, WNW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 16 Jul, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 8s period, WNW swell with 311 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 12 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 14s period with SSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Depressions this week:
The surf forecast for Depressions over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Jul 12) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Depressions in the next 16 days are 1.6m 8s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 16) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Sun 12th Jul) | 2ft (0.6m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Wed 15th Jul) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 6s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Thu 16th Jul) | 5ft (1.6m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Depressions over the next 16 days.
Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking for our stretch of coast.
Honestly, the next couple of weeks are looking pretty lackluster. There’s a lot of onshore and cross-onshore wind, and the swell is mostly weak and messy. The water temp is sitting at 64°F, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so that’s a small comfort. But for the first solid week, the surf is just poor. We’re looking at a long gap before anything even gets close to interesting.
The first real flicker of hope shows up on the morning of Thursday, July 16th, at Depressions. We’ve got a 4ft swell rolling in from the WNW, but the period is only 9 seconds – short-period stuff, so not much punch. The combined energy is moderate (402), and the wind is onshore from the WSW at 6 mph, meaning it’s going to be a bit bumpy. It’s still a marginal call, nothing to get excited about.
The standout moment, if you can call it that, comes on the morning of Saturday, July 18th. The swell is small at 2ft from the SW, but the period jumps to 18 seconds – that’s a proper long-period groundswell. The combined energy is strong (537), and the wind is only a light cross-onshore from the SSE at 3 mph, almost glassy. This is the best we’ve got in the whole window. The waves will be clean, but because it’s such a long period, it’s going to break better at a point or reef. Depressions is a beach break, so it might be a bit too straight-running. Still, for the sheer quality of the swell energy and the light wind, Saturday morning, July 18th, is your best bet.
After that, the rest of the window is a mix of onshore wind and small, weak swells. The morning of Friday, July 24th, has a tiny 1ft swell with a 24-second period (very long period), but the combined energy is only moderate (268). It’s a marginal call, and that long period on a beach break is a real caveat. The morning of Saturday, July 25th, has a 2ft swell from the SW with a 21-second period and strong energy (569), but the cross-onshore wind from the WSW at 6 mph will put a little texture on it.
In short: don’t paddle out until the weekend of July 18th. Even then, keep your expectations low. The surf is small and the wind is fickle.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Tue morning, min 17°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 33°C on Wed afternoon, min 23°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sat 11 | Sunday 12 | Monday 13 | Tuesday 14 | Wednesday 15 | Thursday 16 | Friday 17 | |||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | WNW 9 | SW 18 | WNW 6 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 17 | WNW 17 | SW 18 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 118 | 152 | 163 | 136 | 104 | 139 | 141 | 68 | 43 | 51 | 126 | 114 | 167 | 190 | 238 | 206 | 271 | 173 | 97 | 96 | 194 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross-off | on | on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on |
High Tide | 7:29PM2.37m | 9:53AM1.46m | 8:23PM2.47m | 10:38AM1.52m | 9:15PM2.51m | 11:20AM1.58m | 10:06PM2.48m | 12:03PM1.64m | 10:56PM2.37m | 12:45PM1.70m | 11:46PM2.18m | 1:27PM1.75m | 00:38AM1.94m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 3:08AM-0.01m | 1:54PM1.11m | 3:56AM-0.12m | 2:53PM1.07m | 4:42AM-0.16m | 3:49PM1.03m | 5:26AM-0.12m | 4:46PM0.99m | 6:08AM-0.01m | 5:45PM0.97m | 6:48AM0.15m | 6:48PM0.96m | 7:27AM0.35m | ||||||||
 |  | |  | |  | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 6:00 |
 | 8:13 | — | — | 8:13 | — | — | 8:13 | — | — | 8:12 | — | — | 8:12 | — | — | 8:10 | — | — | 8:10 | — | 8:09 |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 22 | 20 | 24 | 26 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 27 | 31 | 29 | 31 | 33 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 25 | 27 |
Feels °C | 23 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 27 | 26 | 24 | 27 | 30 | 25 | 30 | 31 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 27 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 8 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | W 4 | WNW 4 | SSW 12 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | W 8 |
| kJ | 42 | 152 | 163 | 136 | 104 | 139 | 141 | 9 | 6 | 51 | 109 | 77 | 67 | 90 | 238 | 206 | 271 | 173 | 94 | 68 | 44 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 14 | W 8 | WNW 9 | S 15 | W 4 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | SSW 13 | NW 9 | NW 8 | SSW 13 | W 13 | WNW 13 | W 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 19 | WNW 18 | WNW 17 | WNW 17 | SW 18 |
| kJ | 118 | 36 | 27 | 67 | 8 | 34 | 31 | 68 | 19 | 17 | 56 | 32 | 35 | 14 | 89 | 87 | 92 | 104 | 97 | 96 | 194 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 16 | S 18 | S 18 | WNW 9 | NW 9 | W 16 | SW 19 | NW 9 | S 12 | SW 18 | WNW 14 | S 13 | S 12 | SSW 21 | WNW 20 | WNW 19 | WNW 19 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 17 | WNW 16 |
| kJ | 21 | 24 | 25 | 27 | 22 | 20 | 59 | 21 | 26 | 49 | 41 | 14 | 11 | 44 | 75 | 72 | 69 | 54 | 54 | 77 | 146 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | WNW 9 | W 5 | WNW 6 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 43 | 17 | 126 | 114 | 167 | 190 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 149 | 0 | 53 | 1 | 0 | 264 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 35 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 42 | 0 | 149 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Barbara | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Depressions surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Depressions Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Depressions provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Depressions can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Depressions surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Depressions) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Depressions may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Depressions is 1 km (1 miles) from Isla Vista. If you plan a vacation in Santa Barbara, look for hotels and other accommodation in Isla Vista. Isla Vista has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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