
Surf Forecasts:
Pescaderos surf forecast from 9 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 10 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 17s period, SW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 13 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 8s period, WNW swell with 329 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 8 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 10s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Pescaderos this week:
The surf forecast for Pescaderos over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 08) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 13s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Pescaderos in the next 16 days are 1.5m 8s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 13) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.7m 6s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 13) at 8PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Tue 8th Sep) | 2ft (0.6m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Thu 10th Sep) | 2ft (0.6m) 17s |
| Most Powerful | 11PM (Sun 13th Sep) | 5ft (1.5m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Pescaderos over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let's break down the next couple of weeks for our stretch of coast. It's gonna be a bit of a mixed bag, so let's talk it through.
The water is running real warm for this time of year, like 70° with a big old anomaly of 7° warmer than usual. That's a serious spike, so you can probably leave the thickest suit at home for a while. The word on the street is it's gonna be a waiting game, with small, often weak pulses of swell and a lot of marginal days ahead. But there are a couple of moments that look worth circling on the calendar.
Tuesday afternoon, September 8th kicks things off with the most promising conditions we'll see for a while. We've got a clean 3ft of SSW swell at Pescaderos, with a 13-second period pushing in. The wind is a light cross-off from the W at 3 mph, which will leave the surface glassy. The wave energy is moderate, nothing crazy at 276, but it's the cleanest it's going to be for a bit. This is a good time to get wet if you're a beginner or just want a fun, mellow session.
After that, the week settles into a real grind. From Wednesday September 9th through the weekend, we're looking at small, short-period swell, mostly in the 1ft to 2ft range, with periods dropping below 8 seconds at times. It's going to be weak, with energy readings often below 150 and a lot of cross or cross-on winds. Thursday afternoon the 10th has a clean 2ft with a cross-off breeze, but the period is only 16 seconds so it should be rideable. Still, plenty of these days are going to feel like a whole lot of nothing.
Saturday the 12th sees a slight bump in size, but it's junky. The morning is a cross-shore mess of 3ft that's all over the place, and the afternoon has the size up to 5ft but it's coming from the WNW with a short 6-second period. That's just a jumbled, onshore-boosted mess, not worth your time for a paddle. The energy is still only moderate at 331, so it's not powerful, just messy.
We get a little taste of something on Sunday the 13th with a 4ft WNW swell in the morning, but again, the period is short and the winds are cross. It's a tease. From the 14th to the 22nd, it's a long, drawn-out stretch of small surf, with most days showing 1ft to 2ft and poor to marginal conditions. There will be the odd clean window, like the afternoons of the 18th and 19th, where the wind goes cross-off and the surf is tiny but clean, but it's all a bit of a struggle.
Now, here's where it gets interesting. Look ahead to the final day of the forecast window: Wednesday afternoon, September 23rd. That's when the models are showing a real spike. The swell is expected to jump to 6ft from the WNW, and the energy is forecast at a strong 515. The period is short at 6 seconds, which means it will be a raw, powerful wind swell rather than a clean groundswell. With a 9 mph cross-off wind, it might be clean, but at that size with that short a period, it's going to be a handful. This is one for experienced surfers only, and even then, it might be more of a battle than a joy. It's a long way out, so treat it as a promising but uncertain possibility.
For the week in between, there are just no real standouts. It’s a classic long stretch of small, underwhelming surf. The setup looks a bit more interesting for those with a kite, especially if the swell and wind line-up on that Saturday the 12th, than for us paddle surfers. Keep the board waxed for that Tuesday and maybe get ready for the 23rd.
Signing off, Rusty.
Short Range ForecastSome drizzle, heaviest during Tue afternoon. Warm (max 33°C on Wed morning, min 23°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Fri afternoon, min 18°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Tue 8 | Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | Friday 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | ||||||||||||||
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 | SW 16 | SW 19 | SW 17 | SSW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 15 | SW 15 | SW 14 | WNW 6 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | SW 19 | WNW 9 | W 8 | W 9 | W 9 |
Wave Graph | ||||||||||||||||||||
222 | 71 | 94 | 138 | 195 | 295 | 261 | 251 | 196 | 146 | 171 | 104 | 188 | 306 | 243 | 58 | 295 | 124 | 154 | 158 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross-off | off | cross | cross-off | off | cross | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross | glassy |
High Tide | 8:15PM2.22m | 9:36AM1.79m | 9:03PM2.19m | 10:04AM1.88m | 9:50PM2.10m | 10:33AM1.95m | 10:35PM1.96m | 11:01AM2.00m | 11:21PM1.79m | 11:30AM2.01m | 00:10AM1.60m | 11:59AM1.98m | 1:05AM1.43m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:11PM0.93m | 3:11AM0.12m | 3:00PM0.78m | 3:45AM0.19m | 3:47PM0.66m | 4:17AM0.32m | 4:32PM0.57m | 4:46AM0.47m | 5:18PM0.52m | 5:14AM0.65m | 6:05PM0.52m | 5:39AM0.83m | 6:55PM0.55m | |||||||
— | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | |
7:15 | — | — | 7:15 | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | 7:12 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:08 | — | — | 7:07 | — | |
mm | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 29 | 28 | 33 | 33 | 31 | 30 | 32 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 23 | 24 | 27 | 20 | 23 | 24 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 20 |
Feels °C | 29 | 27 | 31 | 32 | 29 | 31 | 31 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 18 | 22 | 23 | 19 | 22 | 23 | 20 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 13 | S 10 | S 9 | SW 17 | SSW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | W 6 | SSW 15 | SW 15 | WNW 7 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | W 8 | SW 18 | SW 17 |
222 | 71 | 41 | 138 | 195 | 295 | 261 | 251 | 34 | 146 | 171 | 91 | 102 | 96 | 46 | 45 | 45 | 124 | 108 | 75 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 4 | SW 16 | SW 19 | SSW 9 | SSW 8 | WNW 5 | SSW 8 | S 11 | SW 16 | WSW 16 | WNW 8 | SW 14 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | SW 19 | SW 19 | SW 19 | SW 18 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 |
5 | 68 | 94 | 25 | 13 | 19 | 12 | 9 | 196 | 51 | 24 | 103 | 35 | 29 | 58 | 58 | 57 | 48 | 15 | 15 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 18 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 8 | S 12 | WNW 12 | W 18 | WNW 11 | WSW 15 | WSW 13 | S 9 | S 9 | S 8 | WSW 16 | S 9 | SW 13 | S 9 | S 8 |
49 | 34 | 56 | 31 | 28 | 12 | 11 | 14 | 24 | 12 | 42 | 35 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 25 | 2 | 27 | 1 | 1 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | WNW 4 | WNW 4 | W 4 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 6 | W 5 | WNW 6 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | WNW 6 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | W 9 | W 9 |
— | 9 | 5 | 16 | 40 | — | 46 | 48 | 33 | 57 | 50 | 104 | 188 | 306 | 243 | 135 | 295 | 95 | 154 | 158 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 309 | 0 | 143 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 143 | 35 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 1 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Barbara | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Pescaderos Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Pescaderos provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Pescaderos can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Pescaderos 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 (Pescaderos) 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 Pescaderos 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.
Pescaderos 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.










