Surf Forecasts:
Depressions surf forecast from 20 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 23 Aug, 8AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 19s period, SW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 27 Aug, 11AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 14s period, S swell with 508 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 20 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 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 Thursday (Aug 20) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 12s. Another secondary swell of 0.9m and 5s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Depressions in the next 16 days are 1.1m 14s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 27) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Thu 20th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Sun 23rd Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 19s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Thu 27th Aug) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Depressions over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s happening at Depressions—a beginner-friendly spot that’s fairly consistent, but I gotta level with ya: this 16-day window is pretty bleak. From Thursday the 20th of August, it’s nothing but "poor surf conditions" for days on end. There’s a couple of "marginal" calls sprinkled in, but nothing worth paddling out for.
The water temperature is a balmy 69°, which is a full 6° warmer than normal for this time of year. That’s very unusual—like the ocean’s running a fever.
The first sniff of something rideable comes on Tuesday the 25th of August in the morning. Swell’s a tiny 2 ft from the SW with a 16-second period, and the combined energy is 270—still weak. Wind is light and onshore from the WSW at 6 mph, so it’s clean but the swell’s just not there.
That pattern drags on through the end of August. A few mornings on the 27th and 28th get a "marginal" tag, but the swell barely hits 4 ft and the wind stays onshore. You’d be working hard for nothing.
We get a little bump around the 3rd of September. Thursday the 3rd shows 8 ft from the WNW, but with a period of just 6 seconds—that’s short-period, wind-slop. It’s marginal, and at that size on a beach break, it’s more of a challenge than fun. The combined energy hits 593, which is moderate, but the quality is poor.
Bottom line: there’s no standout here. The best you can hope for is a knee-high, clean wave on a light wind morning, but it’s all onshore or cross-onshore. If the wind picks up, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. Not much to get excited about, but forecasts can change, so don’t write it off completely.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 31°C on Sat afternoon, min 22°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 34°C on Tue afternoon, min 24°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SSW 15 | SW 19 | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | WNW 6 | S 14 | S 13 | S 14 | S 13 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 118 | 120 | 79 | 59 | 58 | 87 | 56 | 62 | 78 | 90 | 79 | 112 | 109 | 98 | 135 | 130 | 110 | 134 | 161 | 302 | 347 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | glassy |
High Tide | 4:21PM1.79m | 8:37AM1.33m | 5:31PM1.81m | 8:55AM1.39m | 6:29PM1.88m | 9:13AM1.44m | 7:17PM1.97m | 9:31AM1.49m | 7:57PM2.04m | 9:50AM1.54m | 8:34PM2.09m | 10:09AM1.59m | 9:10PM2.11m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 00:43AM0.59m | 10:39AM1.31m | 1:34AM0.49m | 12:14PM1.30m | 2:13AM0.40m | 1:10PM1.24m | 2:46AM0.33m | 1:52PM1.16m | 3:15AM0.27m | 2:29PM1.07m | 3:42AM0.25m | 3:05PM0.98m | 4:07AM0.27m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:22 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — |
 | — | 7:40 | — | — | 7:39 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:36 | — | — | 7:35 | — | — | 7:32 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 29 | 26 | 28 | 30 | 26 | 29 | 31 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 30 | 31 | 27 | 31 | 34 | 28 | 32 | 34 | 28 |
Feels °C | 27 | 29 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 24 | 28 | 30 | 25 | 29 | 29 | 25 | 28 | 30 | 24 | 29 | 30 | 24 | 30 | 32 | 24 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 5 | SSW 14 | WNW 5 | WNW 7 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | SSW 15 | WNW 8 | SSW 13 | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | S 14 | S 14 | S 13 | S 14 | S 13 |
| kJ | 29 | 120 | 48 | 35 | 58 | 58 | 25 | 24 | 71 | 77 | 57 | 112 | 109 | 98 | 135 | 130 | 58 | 134 | 161 | 302 | 347 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 14 | WNW 12 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | WNW 11 | WNW 11 | SSW 13 | SSW 14 | WNW 9 | SSW 13 | SW 18 | SSW 14 | S 14 | SSW 12 | S 13 | S 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | W 13 |
| kJ | 118 | 46 | 79 | 59 | 40 | 23 | 56 | 41 | 26 | 33 | 79 | 65 | 37 | 29 | 55 | 54 | 90 | 122 | 124 | 119 | 30 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 13 | SW 19 | WNW 12 | WNW 11 | WSW 18 | WSW 18 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SSW 19 | SW 19 | S 16 | S 15 | SSW 14 | S 14 | SSE 10 | W 18 | W 16 | W 15 | S 16 | W 13 | SW 15 |
| kJ | 31 | 14 | 46 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 50 | 44 | 37 | 90 | 20 | 38 | 41 | 36 | 10 | 24 | 21 | 40 | 81 | 55 | 33 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 6 | WNW 5 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 |
| kJ | — | 27 | 56 | — | 50 | 87 | 41 | 62 | 78 | — | 40 | 59 | 46 | 81 | 61 | 62 | 110 | 74 | 84 | 176 | 119 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 35 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 310 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 35 | 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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