Surf Forecasts:
Refugio State Beach surf forecast from 31 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 4 Sep, 8PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 16s period, SSW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 6 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 15s period, S swell with 836 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 31 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 14s period with SSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Refugio State Beach this week:
The surf forecast for Refugio State Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 31) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 14s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Refugio State Beach in the next 16 days are 1.4m 15s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 06) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.6m 6s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 03) at 8PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Mon 31st Aug) | 3ft (0.9m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 8PM (Fri 4th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Sun 6th Sep) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 15s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Refugio State Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into it.
Right off the bat, the water is running a wild 4° warmer than usual for this time of year at Refugio State Beach – that’s way out of the ordinary, so you’ll be shedding the wetsuit for sure.
The first real window of opportunity is Monday morning, 31 August. We’ve got a clean 3 ft swell from the SSW pushing in with a decent 14-second period, and the wind is glassy. That’s a rare treat – the surface will be like a mirror, so if you’re a beginner, this is your moment to get out there and enjoy some fun little waves without any hassle.
The situation goes quiet again after that, with very small surf and messy cross-shore winds for days. The next standout doesn’t show up until Sunday morning, 6 September. That morning, the swell jumps to 5 ft from the S with a 15-second period, the wind is dead calm and glassy, and the combined energy is strong (987). That’s the best on offer across the whole 16 days – clean, solid, and punchy. It’s not huge, but it’s the best we’ll see.
After that, the middle of September stays pretty flat and marginal. There’s a small window on Friday afternoon, 11 September, when the swell bumps up to 3 ft from the WNW with an 11-second period, and the wind is light cross-shore – but it’s nothing special. The rest of the second week is tiny, weak, and mostly cross-onshore, so don’t hold your breath.
If you’ve got a kite, some of those afternoons with clean cross-off winds and a bit of chop might be more interesting than paddling. For the rest of us, pick Monday morning or that Sunday morning and make the most of it.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 29°C on Sun afternoon, min 13°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Wed afternoon, min 15°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Sun 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | ||||||||||||||
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 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 18 | SSW 20 | SW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 330 | 325 | 229 | 161 | 154 | 114 | 96 | 109 | 132 | 129 | 209 | 152 | 323 | 404 | 493 | 559 | 441 | 506 | 499 | 348 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 11:47PM1.69m | 12:09PM1.93m | 00:39AM1.51m | 12:44PM1.96m | 1:48AM1.33m | 1:27PM1.97m | 3:39AM1.21m | 2:26PM1.96m | 6:25AM1.24m | 3:45PM1.97m | 7:36AM1.36m | 5:09PM2.02m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 5:51PM0.69m | 5:45AM0.68m | 6:44PM0.65m | 6:10AM0.83m | 7:48PM0.63m | 6:36AM0.98m | 9:08PM0.60m | 7:06AM1.11m | 10:42PM0.52m | 8:03AM1.24m | 00:03AM0.40m | 10:26AM1.29m | 1:05AM0.26m | |||||||
 |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  | |
 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — |
 | 7:29 | — | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:25 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:23 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:21 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 29 | 19 | 25 | 27 | 18 | 24 | 25 | 17 | 24 | 28 | 17 | 25 | 28 | 18 | 24 | 25 | 19 | 24 | 25 | 23 |
Feels °C | 27 | 16 | 24 | 25 | 16 | 23 | 23 | 14 | 21 | 24 | 14 | 23 | 25 | 16 | 23 | 24 | 17 | 23 | 24 | 22 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 10 | S 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSE 14 |
| kJ | 330 | 325 | 229 | 161 | 154 | 114 | 96 | 50 | 117 | 93 | 103 | 109 | 323 | 404 | 493 | 559 | 441 | 506 | 499 | 492 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 14 | SSE 13 | S 13 | SSE 12 | S 12 | S 11 | S 11 | SSW 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSW 18 | SW 15 | SSW 12 | SSW 10 | WNW 10 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | SSE 13 | SSE 15 | SSW 15 |
| kJ | 37 | 53 | 130 | 117 | 98 | 59 | 58 | 63 | 132 | 129 | 209 | 116 | 57 | 59 | 35 | 96 | 172 | 195 | 376 | 348 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 9 | W 11 | SW 19 | SW 19 | WNW 10 | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 18 | WNW 10 | S 10 | S 15 | SSW 20 | SSW 10 | SSE 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 10 | NW 10 | WNW 7 | NW 10 | NW 10 |
| kJ | 6 | 2 | 15 | 14 | 9 | 50 | 50 | 109 | 10 | 30 | 4 | 152 | 32 | 15 | 65 | 38 | 48 | 34 | 27 | 26 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 6 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | NW 5 | WNW 4 | WNW 5 | NW 4 | WNW 4 | WNW 5 | NW 5 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 10 | WNW 5 | NW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 |
| kJ | 162 | 102 | 80 | 109 | 49 | 24 | 54 | 26 | 26 | 69 | 80 | 58 | 134 | 105 | 31 | 169 | 33 | 65 | 30 | 32 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 56 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 56 | 0 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 163 | 3 | 0 | 164 | 21 | 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 Refugio State Beach 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 Refugio State Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Refugio State Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Refugio State Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Refugio State Beach 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 (Refugio State Beach) 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 Refugio State Beach 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.
Refugio State Beach is 21 km (13 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.
Nearest