Surf Forecasts:
Indicators surf forecast from 24 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 29 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 18s period, SSW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 29 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 18s period, SSW swell with 705 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 24 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 18s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Indicators this week:
The surf forecast for Indicators over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 24) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 18s period with a secondary swell of 0.8m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Indicators in the next 16 days are 1.1m 18s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 29) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.7m 13s period and expected on Wednesday (Aug 26) at 11PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Mon 24th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 18s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Sat 29th Aug) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 18s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Sat 29th Aug) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 18s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Indicators over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Oi, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Indicators over the next couple of weeks.
Honestly, it’s a bit of a slow start. For the first few days, we’re looking at mostly poor surf conditions with small, weak swell. The first real chance of anything half decent doesn’t show up until Tuesday morning, the 25th of August, with a tiny 2ft swell from the SSW, but the wind is glassy, which is a major positive. Still, it’s pretty ordinary.
The real standout looks like a window around Friday the 4th of September. Thursday afternoon the 3rd of September gets glassy, with a 3ft SSW swell coming in (20-second period, so long-period groundswell). That’s gonna be clean. The combined swell energy is a moderate 721. That’s a good sign.
But Friday morning the 4th of September is the pick. The swell jumps to 6ft from the WNW, with a 9-second period, and the wind is glassy. The combined energy is a strong 1226. That’s real grunt. This is gonna be for experienced surfers, as it’s over 5ft, but the clean conditions will make it a proper session. The break here is a point break, sheltered from the swell, but the optimum swell direction is WNW, which matches the forecast direction. It’s fairly consistent, but crowds are often here, so get in early.
For the rest of the second week, there’s a bit of pulse around the 5th and 6th of September, with 5ft to 6ft WNW swell, but the winds are onshore or cross-onshore, and the conditions are only marginal. The best of that secondary window is Saturday morning the 5th, with 6ft WNW swell and onshore winds at only 3 mph, but it’s not the clean, glassy perfection of the Friday.
There’s a long gap of nothing much before that Friday. We’ve got a few days of poor surf from the 25th of August right through the end of the month, with only small, weak swells and cross-onshore winds. The water temperature on Sunday the 23rd of August is 62°F, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year.
So, keep your eyes on Friday the 4th of September. That’s your best bet. The rest is a bit of a wait for the good stuff.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Wed afternoon, min 15°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Thu afternoon, min 14°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||
Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | ||||||||||||||
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 18 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | NW 7 | SW 14 | WNW 6 | SSW 14 | SSW 17 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 157 | 155 | 147 | 190 | 181 | 130 | 124 | 169 | 166 | 206 | 103 | 124 | 136 | 336 | 292 | 486 | 697 | 505 | 582 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | glassy | on | on | glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | glassy |
High Tide | 10:46AM1.29m | 8:23PM1.62m | 11:04AM1.28m | 9:08PM1.62m | 11:20AM1.29m | 9:49PM1.61m | 11:36AM1.32m | 10:29PM1.57m | 11:54AM1.36m | 11:10PM1.51m | 12:15PM1.43m | 11:54PM1.42m | |||||||
Low Tide | 3:08AM0.03m | 2:56PM0.94m | 3:42AM-0.03m | 3:32PM0.85m | 4:12AM-0.07m | 4:05PM0.75m | 4:38AM-0.07m | 4:37PM0.64m | 5:03AM-0.03m | 5:11PM0.53m | 5:28AM0.06m | 5:47PM0.43m | |||||||
 |  | | | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — |
 | — | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:44 | — | — | 7:42 | — | — | 7:40 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 16 | 20 | 23 | 18 | 22 | 26 | 20 | 23 | 28 | 21 | 24 | 27 | 21 | 21 | 26 | 19 | 18 | 24 | 18 |
Feels °C | 17 | 20 | 22 | 19 | 21 | 25 | 20 | 22 | 26 | 20 | 23 | 26 | 20 | 19 | 23 | 17 | 17 | 22 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | S 14 | WNW 8 | SSW 16 | S 13 | WNW 6 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | WNW 7 | S 12 | S 11 | SSW 14 | SSW 17 | SSW 19 | WNW 7 | SSW 18 | SSW 16 | WNW 8 |
| kJ | 67 | 71 | 150 | 37 | 181 | 87 | 20 | 169 | 166 | 131 | 101 | 94 | 136 | 336 | 292 | 102 | 697 | 505 | 232 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 14 | S 14 | SW 17 | SSW 17 | S 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | W 13 | S 14 | S 12 | SW 14 | SW 14 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | SSW 18 | S 10 | S 10 | SSW 16 |
| kJ | 106 | 153 | 147 | 190 | 126 | 130 | 124 | 55 | 93 | 148 | 103 | 103 | 61 | 59 | 50 | 486 | 16 | 17 | 582 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 18 | SW 18 | W 11 | S 13 | W 17 | W 16 | S 13 | S 12 | W 13 | SSW 15 | W 11 | W 11 | S 13 | W 10 | SW 14 | S 10 | S 10 | — | S 9 |
| kJ | 157 | 155 | 9 | 92 | 23 | 45 | 86 | 46 | 55 | 148 | 38 | 39 | 30 | 34 | 89 | 30 | 18 | — | 16 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | WNW 8 | NW 7 | WNW 7 | WNW 4 | NW 5 | WNW 6 | NW 5 | NW 7 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 7 | WNW 7 | WNW 7 | NW 7 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | NW 8 |
| kJ | — | — | 66 | 91 | 36 | 34 | 45 | 30 | 51 | 206 | 68 | 124 | 127 | 127 | 116 | 144 | 197 | 161 | 362 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 144 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Cruz | |||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||
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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 Indicators 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 Indicators Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Indicators provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Indicators can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Indicators 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 (Indicators) 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 Indicators 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.
Indicators is 3 km (2 miles) from Santa Cruz. If you plan a vacation in Santa Cruz, look for hotels and other accommodation in Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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