Surf Forecasts:
Depressions surf forecast from 25 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 26 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 13s period, SSE swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 30 Aug, 8AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 15s period, SSW swell with 326 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 25 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 16s period with SW 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 Tuesday (Aug 25) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 16s. Another secondary swell of 1.1m and 5s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Depressions in the next 16 days are 0.9m 15s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 8AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.1m 12s period and expected on Sunday (Aug 30) at 2PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Tue 25th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 16s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Wed 26th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 13s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Sun 30th Aug) | 3ft (0.9m) 15s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Depressions over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let's talk about Depressions. It's a rough stretch ahead, and I'm not gonna lie to you. The water is a warm 70°, which is a full 6° warmer than usual for this time of year – that's very unusual, and you'll feel it.
We're in a long, quiet patch. The first real chance of anything rideable doesn't show up for days. From Tuesday, the 25th of August, it's just poor conditions. Tiny, weak swells, mostly under 3ft, with a lot of onshore or cross-onshore wind. The wave energy is weak, barely cracking 200 (205), so there's no push.
We get a slight flicker on Wednesday, the 26th, with a 3ft SSE swell, but it's still marginal. The wind is light, but the quality isn't there. Thursday and Friday are more of the same – poor and choppy, especially Friday afternoon with the wind gusting to 12 mph and the swell dropping to a 5-second period. That's just wind chop.
The weekend of the 29th and 30th shows more energy, with numbers climbing into the 400s (481, 559, 428), but the swell is still small, around 2ft to 3ft, and the wind is onshore or cross-on, making a mess. Saturday morning's swell has a long 17-second period, but it's wasted on the onshore wind.
This pattern drags through the end of August and into the first week of September. Every day is the same: small swells, poor surf, cross-onshore breezes. You'll see a marginal rating on the 4th of September, and again on the 6th, but nothing worth planning for.
The best of a bad bunch comes on the 9th of September, Wednesday morning. A 2ft SW swell with a long 18-second period, and the wind is just a slight air, making it a light cross-onshore. The energy is moderate (334). This is the closest we get to clean, but the swell is still tiny. It's a longboard session, not a proper surf.
For the whole 16-day window, there's nothing that stands out. It's a blank run. Don't hold your breath.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 33°C on Wed morning, min 24°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 33°C on Fri morning, min 20°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSE 13 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | S 11 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | WNW 6 | S 13 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 130 | 91 | 133 | 212 | 189 | 126 | 108 | 123 | 142 | 146 | 280 | 312 | 302 | 261 | 255 | 314 | 218 | 213 | 116 | 106 | 82 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | on | on | glassy | cross-on | glassy | glassy | on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 9:50AM1.54m | 8:34PM2.09m | 10:09AM1.59m | 9:10PM2.11m | 10:30AM1.66m | 9:45PM2.07m | 10:51AM1.73m | 10:22PM1.99m | 11:14AM1.81m | 11:01PM1.86m | 11:39AM1.87m | 11:45PM1.70m | 12:07PM1.93m | 00:36AM1.51m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:29PM1.07m | 3:42AM0.25m | 3:05PM0.98m | 4:07AM0.27m | 3:43PM0.89m | 4:32AM0.32m | 4:22PM0.81m | 4:56AM0.41m | 5:03PM0.74m | 5:19AM0.53m | 5:49PM0.69m | 5:43AM0.68m | 6:42PM0.65m | ||||||||
 |  |  | | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — |
 | — | 7:35 | — | — | 7:32 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:29 | — | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:27 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 29 | 32 | 29 | 33 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 32 | 28 | 33 | 32 | 28 | 30 | 31 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 23 | 25 | 26 | 22 |
Feels °C | 29 | 32 | 27 | 32 | 31 | 30 | 32 | 34 | 27 | 31 | 31 | 26 | 29 | 29 | 22 | 26 | 26 | 20 | 23 | 24 | 20 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 5 | S 13 | WNW 5 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | W 8 | S 9 | S 9 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | S 13 |
| kJ | 21 | 55 | 51 | 212 | 189 | 79 | 87 | 65 | 131 | 43 | 25 | 312 | 302 | 261 | 255 | 314 | 218 | 213 | 116 | 105 | 82 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSE 13 | WNW 7 | WNW 7 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 16 | SW 16 | S 18 | S 17 | S 16 | S 16 | S 9 | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | SSW 13 |
| kJ | 130 | 91 | 133 | 40 | 51 | 126 | 108 | 123 | 82 | 95 | 68 | 152 | 91 | 127 | 122 | 2 | 14 | 12 | 50 | 28 | 68 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 13 | SSE 10 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | W 10 | S 19 | S 8 | W 9 | S 9 | S 9 | W 20 | S 9 | S 13 | SSE 10 | S 14 | SW 19 |
| kJ | 55 | 10 | 89 | 124 | 85 | 75 | 74 | 73 | 65 | 31 | 66 | 12 | 27 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 84 | 9 | 16 | 14 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | WNW 5 | — | — | WNW 7 | WNW 5 | — | — | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | WNW 5 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 5 |
| kJ | — | 27 | — | — | 42 | 13 | — | — | 142 | 146 | 280 | 122 | 140 | 171 | 194 | 201 | 160 | 97 | 114 | 106 | 74 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 149 | 1 | 0 | 35 | 35 | 0 | 118 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 35 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
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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