Isla Vista Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, it’s Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you: looking out over the next 16 days at Isla Vista, it’s a pretty grim run for paddle surfing. We’ve got a massive stretch of poor conditions ahead. The first recommendation for surf is Sunday morning the 23rd, but even then, it’s a no-go. Basically, the whole forecast window is a write-off from the 23rd of August all the way through to Monday the 7th of September.

The water temp is sitting at 69°, which is a massive 6° warmer than normal for this time of year. That’s very unusual, feels more like a bath than the ocean.

Right from Sunday the 23rd, the combined wave energy is weak to moderate (160) with a tiny 1 ft swell from the SW. That long 19-second period is juicy for the points, but with a light onshore breeze and “poor surf conditions” flagged, it’s not worth paddling out for. The rest of that week is more of the same: tiny swells, mostly cross-onshore winds, and choppy water. By Wednesday the 25th afternoon, we see a jump to 4 ft from the WNW, but it’s a short-period 6-second windswell with a moderate cross-onshore making it messy. The energy climbs into the moderate range (243) but the quality is trash.

The first couple of days of September don’t offer any relief. We see a bigger pulse peaking on Thursday the 3rd of September afternoon with 7 ft from the WNW, but that windswell has a period of just 6 seconds and it's cross-on. Combined energy is strong at 692, but with such poor wind and short period, this setup looks far more interesting for a kite surfer than someone on a paddle board. It’s just too raw and choppy for a clean wave. The following days into the second week see the swell drop back down to under 3 ft, but the cross-onshore wind never really lets up, so the surf stays poor.

Honestly, there isn’t a single standout session here. This is a blank run that’s pretty normal for the area during a quiet spell. Don’t bother with the board for now.

Rusty.

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