Surf Forecasts:
Indicators surf forecast from 1 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 4 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 18s period, SSW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 4 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 16s period, SSW swell with 604 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 1 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 13s period with SSW 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 Tuesday (Sep 01) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 13s period. 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 16s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 04) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.4m 15s period and expected on Monday (Sep 07) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Tue 1st Sep) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 18s |
| Most Powerful | 11PM (Fri 4th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 16s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Indicators over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Hey folks, Rusty here. Let's break down the next couple of weeks for this break.
To be straight with you, it's looking pretty flat and funky. The first real chance of anything worth paddling out for isn't until Friday the 4th of September, and even then, it's just a morning window.
The big problem is the swell direction. This spot (Indicators) is a sheltered point that needs a WNW swell to work its magic. But almost all the swell we're seeing is coming from the SSW or SW – totally the wrong angle, so it won't wrap in properly. We're looking at a lot of days with poor surf conditions, with combined wave energy mostly in the 100-300 range (weak to moderate). Not enough oomph from the right direction.
Water temp is around 59°F, which is pretty average for this time of year. Nothing unusual.
So, for the standout – and it's a slim pickin' – it's Friday the 4th of September morning. We've got a 3ft SSW groundswell with a long 18-second period. That long period means proper energy, with good gaps between sets, making the paddle out easier. The wind is glassy – dead calm – so the surface will be smooth as butter. The combined energy hits 838 (moderate), the best reading of the whole outlook. The issue is, at 3ft from the SSW, it won't be big or perfect, but with those glassy conditions, it's the best you'll see.
After that morning, the wind swings onshore for the afternoon and ruins it. The rest of the period is a write-off, with nothing else coming close. Saturday the 5th morning has a 3ft SSW swell, but with cross-on wind, it's just marginal. The 15th of September Tuesday afternoon has a 4ft WNW swell and glassy wind, but the period is a short 9 seconds, so it'll be a weak, messy wave. Better than nothing, but not good.
Honestly, for this spot, the setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for most of the forecast.
So, get out Friday morning if you can. That's your only real window. After that, keep your fingers crossed the forecasts change.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 19°C on Wed afternoon, min 13°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 22°C on Fri afternoon, min 12°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | |||||||||||||||
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 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 18 | SW 17 | SSW 13 | SSW 17 | SSW 19 | SSW 15 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | NW 5 | WNW 6 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 154 | 154 | 123 | 137 | 131 | 246 | 415 | 348 | 497 | 582 | 486 | 499 | 469 | 539 | 551 | 334 | 301 | 305 | 186 | 49 | 51 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | on | glassy | cross-on | on | glassy | cross-on | on | glassy | glassy | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | on | glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | glassy | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:39PM1.66m | 2:48AM1.11m | 2:19PM1.70m | 4:27AM1.04m | 3:09PM1.73m | 6:57AM1.08m | 4:13PM1.73m | 8:23AM1.19m | 5:26PM1.74m | 9:03AM1.28m | 6:42PM1.76m | 9:36AM1.35m | 7:51PM1.77m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 8:09PM0.20m | 7:19AM0.73m | 9:15PM0.16m | 7:56AM0.91m | 10:34PM0.12m | 9:05AM1.05m | 11:55PM0.04m | 11:23AM1.11m | 1:07AM-0.05m | 12:56PM1.02m | 2:06AM-0.14m | 2:02PM0.87m | 2:56AM-0.20m | ||||||||
 |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:37 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — |
 | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:35 | — | — | 7:34 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:29 | — | — | 7:28 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 18 | 16 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 19 | 18 | 21 | 18 | 18 | 22 | 18 | 18 | 23 | 18 |
Feels °C | 15 | 16 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 20 | 16 | 17 | 21 | 16 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SSW 19 | WNW 9 | WNW 10 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSE 14 | S 15 | S 15 | S 14 |
| kJ | 154 | 154 | 96 | 93 | 131 | 146 | 415 | 144 | 183 | 582 | 486 | 499 | 469 | 539 | 551 | 334 | 301 | 346 | 510 | 830 | 786 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 7 | SSE 11 | SSW 18 | SW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 17 | WNW 9 | SSW 15 | SSW 18 | WNW 12 | SSW 13 | WNW 10 | WNW 10 | NW 9 | WNW 9 | S 15 | S 14 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SW 10 | WNW 6 |
| kJ | 19 | 41 | 123 | 137 | 103 | 246 | 65 | 348 | 497 | 256 | 116 | 178 | 122 | 86 | 55 | 155 | 198 | 305 | 186 | 14 | 51 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 12 | SW 18 | SSE 11 | NW 10 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | S 11 | S 11 | SSW 12 | S 11 | S 11 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | S 15 | WNW 9 | SW 11 | WNW 6 | NW 9 | SSW 19 | WNW 12 |
| kJ | 46 | 81 | 40 | 24 | 35 | 64 | 127 | 85 | 150 | 85 | 57 | 121 | 107 | 64 | 109 | 55 | 29 | 43 | 20 | 37 | 14 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | WNW 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | WNW 11 | — | — | WNW 3 | — | — | WNW 9 | NW 6 | WNW 6 | NW 5 | — |
| kJ | — | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 329 | — | — | 4 | — | — | 103 | 54 | 20 | 49 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 270 | 5 | 0 | 37 | 37 | 0 | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 345 | 0 | 104 | 5 | 0 | 144 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Cruz | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
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.
Nearest