Refugio State Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking at Refugio State Beach.

Honestly, this stretch of the coast is in a bit of a slump. The first proper surf worth mentioning kicks off on the morning of Friday the 4th, but it’s a tough one to get excited about. We’ve got a 3ft swell pushing in from the SSW with a long 16-second period, giving it some decent energy (489). The water is much warmer than normal for this time of year, sitting at 68°, which is a real treat. But the wind is a cross-on from the WSW at 6 mph, and the wave comment says it all—poor surf conditions. It’s a beginner-friendly break, but the texture is messy.

Saturday the 5th doesn’t look much better. The morning shows a 3ft SSW swell, still with that long period (16 seconds), and energy building (600). However, the wind is directly onshore, and the forecast is marginal. The afternoon drops to 3ft with a 15-second period (580) and stays cross-on. Not a day to put in the logbook.

Sunday the 6th is the best we’ve got in the near term. The morning brings a 5ft swell from the S, period dropping to 14 seconds, and the energy jumps to 953. The wind is only 3 mph and onshore, but the forecast is still marginal. The afternoon sees the swell nudge up to 5ft (1050) with a light cross-on breeze. It’s not glassy, but it’s the most size we’ll see for a while. For a beginner spot, that 5ft to 5ft is pushing the upper end of friendly, but it’s still manageable.

Monday the 7th holds similar size, with 5ft in the morning (898) and 5ft in the afternoon (990), but the wind stays onshore or cross-on. The energy is moderate, but the quality is marginal. We don’t get a clean break until Wednesday the 9th afternoon, when the wind swings to a cross-off from the NW at 16 mph, cleaning up a 4ft SSW swell (581). That’s the best conditions of the first week, but the swell is small.

Thursday the 10th afternoon sees a jump in size to 7ft from the SW with a shorter 10-second period (1164), but the wind is directly onshore. That’s big enough to be a problem for beginners, and the wind will ruin it.

Things go downhill from there. Friday the 11th through the middle of the second week is a write-off—small, weak swells, poor winds, and rain showers. There’s a gap of several days with no good surf.

There’s a little flicker of hope on Wednesday the 17th morning, with a tiny 1ft swell from the SW but a very long 22-second period (220). That’s a groundswell that will be very straight-breaking at a beach-and-point setup, but it’s not for the paddle surfer. The real standout of the whole 16-day window is Saturday the 19th afternoon. The wind goes clean cross-off from the NW at 9 mph, a 7ft swell from the WNW (641) with a short 6-second period. That’s weak, short-period windswell, but it’s the only time the forecast says “expect good surf conditions.” It’s big for the spot, so experts only, but the clean lines might make it worthwhile for a kite session.

Rusty.

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