Surf Forecasts:
Jelly Bowl surf forecast from 27 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 28 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 17s period, SSW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 3 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 13s period, SSW swell with 482 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 27 Aug, 5PM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 11s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Jelly Bowl this week:
The surf forecast for Jelly Bowl over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 27) at 5PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Jelly Bowl in the next 16 days are 1.2m 13s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 03) at 8AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5PM (Thu 27th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Fri 28th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 17s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Thu 3rd Sep) | 4ft (1.2m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Jelly Bowl over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's talk about what's cooking at Jelly Bowl.
It's a grim outlook, I gotta be honest. For this entire 16-day window, the surf is a flat, wind-affected mess. We've got a 16-day stretch ahead with nothing worth paddling out for. The best we can hope for is a tiny window on Thursday the 3rd of September where we might just scrape into something marginal.
Right now, through the end of August and into the start of September, it's all cross-onshore and onshore wind, keeping the surf small, weak, and chopped up. The wave energy is mostly moderate, peaking around 485 on the morning of Thursday the 3rd, but that comes with a 3.9ft SSW swell that's still cross-on. It's technically surfable but you'll be fighting bumpy, ugly conditions for small, weak waves.
The water is running much warmer than normal for this time of year at a balmy 70.7° on that first record. That anomaly of 7.2° is very unusual indeed, but it's not going to make the surf any better.
The only real standout, if you can call it that, is the morning of Thursday September 3rd. The Guidance (Jelly Bowl) is a beginner-friendly reef break, fairly consistent, with an optimum swell from the SW. That 3.9ft SSW swell with a 13-second period is the biggest we'll see, and the wind is light onshore. It's a long period swell, so the waves will have some shape but the sets will be drawn out. For a beginner, it's the least bad option of this whole run, but you have to accept the onshore bump. It's a bubblegum day, honestly.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 33°C on Thu afternoon, min 22°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Sun afternoon, min 20°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | |||||||||||||||
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) | S 10 | S 11 | SW 17 | SSW 19 | W 10 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | S 15 | S 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 12 | S 11 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 48 | 89 | 76 | 140 | 146 | 270 | 261 | 229 | 229 | 193 | 140 | 118 | 104 | 160 | 104 | 87 | 94 | 137 | 84 | 273 | 367 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | glassy | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 10:24AM1.70m | 9:41PM2.12m | 10:46AM1.77m | 10:18PM2.03m | 11:08AM1.85m | 10:57PM1.90m | 11:33AM1.91m | 11:39PM1.74m | 12:02PM1.97m | 00:30AM1.55m | 12:36PM2.00m | 1:36AM1.36m | 1:19PM2.01m | 3:25AM1.23m | |||||||
Low Tide | 3:39PM0.89m | 4:27AM0.32m | 4:17PM0.81m | 4:51AM0.41m | 4:58PM0.74m | 5:14AM0.53m | 5:43PM0.69m | 5:38AM0.67m | 6:35PM0.66m | 6:02AM0.83m | 7:38PM0.64m | 6:28AM0.98m | 8:59PM0.62m | ||||||||
 | |  |  |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — |
 | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:29 | — | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:27 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:23 | — | — | 7:22 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 31 | 33 | 28 | 30 | 32 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 21 | 25 | 26 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 22 |
Feels °C | 33 | 35 | 29 | 30 | 32 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 21 | 24 | 24 | 20 | 24 | 23 | 21 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 8 | S 11 | W 6 | W 8 | W 10 | W 6 | W 9 | W 9 | W 6 | W 6 | W 7 | W 6 | W 6 | S 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 12 | S 11 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 |
| kJ | 31 | 89 | 38 | 45 | 122 | 43 | 103 | 125 | 80 | 54 | 59 | 44 | 21 | 160 | 104 | 87 | 94 | 137 | 84 | 273 | 367 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 10 | W 8 | S 10 | S 10 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | W 5 | W 5 | W 4 | W 4 | W 4 | SSW 13 | W 4 | W 10 |
| kJ | 48 | 32 | 53 | 28 | 146 | 270 | 261 | 229 | 220 | 193 | 140 | 118 | 78 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 56 | 1 | 2 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 12 | SW 14 | SW 17 | SSW 19 | S 9 | W 9 | S 8 | S 9 | W 10 | WNW 9 | S 14 | SSE 13 | S 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SW 18 | SSW 18 | SW 16 | W 10 | — |
| kJ | 46 | 54 | 76 | 140 | 26 | 15 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 17 | 15 | 56 | 104 | 19 | 69 | 17 | 12 | 31 | 69 | 2 | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | WNW 5 | WNW 6 | W 5 | W 5 | WNW 6 | — | W 5 | WNW 5 | — | — | — | — | — | W 4 | W 4 | — | WNW 4 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 32 | 80 | 27 | 75 | 229 | — | 53 | 74 | — | — | — | — | — | 6 | 2 | — | 4 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 10 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 285 | 0 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 73 | 4 | 0 | 28 | 4 | 0 | 35 | 4 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Barbara | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Jelly Bowl 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 Jelly Bowl Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Jelly Bowl provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Jelly Bowl can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Jelly Bowl 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 (Jelly Bowl) 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 Jelly Bowl 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.
Jelly Bowl is 16 km (10 miles) from the city of Santa Ana. If you plan a vacation in Santa Barbara, look for hotels and other accommodation in Santa Ana. Santa Ana has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest