Surf Forecasts:
Pescaderos surf forecast from 24 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 29 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 9s period, WNW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 30 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 9s period, WNW swell with 328 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 24 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 17s period with SW 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 Monday (Aug 24) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 17s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 14s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Pescaderos in the next 16 days are 1.5m 9s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.8m 6s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8PM (Mon 24th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 17s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Sat 29th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Sun 30th Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Pescaderos over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here.
Well, I gotta be straight with you. The next couple of weeks are looking pretty flat and underwhelming for Pescaderos. We’ve got a long stretch of small, weak swell and a whole lot of nothing to get excited about. The water is sitting at 70°, which is *much warmer* than usual for this time of year – a real standout anomaly that's about 7° above normal.
The first real flicker of life doesn't even show up until Tuesday afternoon, the 25th of August. Even then, we’re talking about a tiny 1ft cross-off wind swell from the W. It’s clean, but barely surfable. The combined energy is weak (156). You'd be on a log or a foamy, and even then it's a struggle.
Things get a little more interesting towards Friday the 28th. The afternoon brings a clean 4ft cross-off from the WNW. The period is a short 8 seconds, so it’s a wind swell, but the energy bumps up to a moderate 317. It’s a “good surf conditions” call, but the swell is small and short-period. It’s the closest thing to a highlight in this first week, but it’s still not a standout.
There’s another pulse of energy on the 30th of August – Sunday morning shows 5ft from the WNW with a massive energy reading of 547, but the period is a snappy 8 seconds again. That’s a lot of chop. It might be a bit much for beginners and not clean enough for the experts. The afternoon clean-up from the SSW is a better bet at 2ft and a longer 14-second period, but it’s still small.
Looking further out, the first week of September is a rinse and repeat of small, clean but weak surf. The best chance for a proper, glassy session looks to be on Sunday, the 6th of September. The morning has glassy conditions with a light SSW wind, a 2ft SSW swell, and a nice 15-second period. The energy is moderate (355). That's your best bet for a clean, cruisy longboard wave in the entire 16-day window. It’s a long-range call so keep an eye on it, but it’s the true standout of the forecast.
For the most part, unless you’re happy with a micro-session on a longboard, the surf is going to be a letdown. The setup here with the light cross-shore winds and small, short-period swell could actually be more fun for a kite surfer than a paddle surfer during the bigger, messier days.
Stay patient.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 33°C on Tue afternoon, min 25°C on Mon morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 31°C on Thu morning, min 21°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | S 11 | S 12 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | SW 18 | SSW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 8 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
109 | 98 | 135 | 130 | 91 | 129 | 152 | 147 | 179 | 151 | 132 | 190 | 125 | 171 | 312 | 197 | 206 | 201 | 306 | 218 | 213 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross | glassy | cross | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross | glassy | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | off | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross | cross-off | glassy |
High Tide | 9:31AM1.49m | 7:57PM2.04m | 9:50AM1.54m | 8:34PM2.09m | 10:09AM1.59m | 9:10PM2.11m | 10:30AM1.66m | 9:45PM2.07m | 10:51AM1.73m | 10:22PM1.99m | 11:14AM1.81m | 11:01PM1.86m | 11:39AM1.87m | 11:45PM1.70m | |||||||
Low Tide | 1:52PM1.16m | 3:15AM0.27m | 2:29PM1.07m | 3:42AM0.25m | 3:05PM0.98m | 4:07AM0.27m | 3:43PM0.89m | 4:32AM0.32m | 4:22PM0.81m | 4:56AM0.41m | 5:03PM0.74m | 5:19AM0.53m | 5:49PM0.69m | ||||||||
6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | |
— | 7:36 | — | — | 7:35 | — | — | 7:32 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:28 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 29 | 29 | 28 | 31 | 33 | 29 | 32 | 32 | 30 | 31 | 31 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 23 | 26 | 26 | 22 |
Feels °C | 29 | 29 | 26 | 29 | 32 | 27 | 31 | 31 | 29 | 31 | 31 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 19 | 25 | 25 | 21 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 5 | SW 17 | SW 17 | WNW 5 | S 13 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | WNW 7 | WNW 5 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | S 9 | SW 18 | WNW 9 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 |
11 | 98 | 135 | 20 | 55 | 129 | 152 | 65 | 39 | 83 | 83 | 190 | 125 | 42 | 312 | 143 | 206 | 201 | 228 | 218 | 213 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 18 | SSW 12 | S 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 7 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | S 11 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | WNW 10 | S 18 | SSW 17 | S 16 | S 16 | S 9 | SW 21 | SSW 14 |
109 | 29 | 55 | 130 | 91 | 89 | 54 | 147 | 179 | 151 | 132 | 82 | 48 | 35 | 152 | 197 | 127 | 124 | 6 | 17 | 183 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 14 | S 14 | SSE 10 | S 13 | SSE 10 | W 15 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 8 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | W 10 | SW 16 | S 9 | S 17 | S 9 | S 9 | W 20 | S 9 | SSE 13 |
37 | 16 | 10 | 54 | 10 | 40 | 122 | 85 | 47 | 74 | 73 | 65 | 33 | 69 | 26 | 91 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 55 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 5 | W 5 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | — | — | WNW 5 | — | — | — | W 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | WNW 5 |
13 | 15 | 32 | — | 33 | 64 | — | — | 61 | — | — | — | 64 | 171 | 119 | 53 | 229 | 166 | 306 | 195 | 97 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 63 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 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.











