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El Capitan Surf Forecast
/ CAL – Santa Barbara (36 breaks) / California (404 breaks) /
El Capitan surfForecast / CAL – Santa Barbara / USA
12 Day Weather and Surf, issued 10 pm Wednesday 16 Apr 2025 PDT
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for El Capitan this week:
The surf forecast for El Capitan over the next 12 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Apr 17) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.7m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 11s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at El Capitan in the next 12 days are 2.0m 7s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Apr 24) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-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 Wednesday (Apr 23) at 8PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5AM (Thu 17th Apr) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Tue 22nd Apr) | 4ft (1.2m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Thu 24th Apr) | 6.5ft (2.0m) 7s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for El Capitan over the next 12 days.
Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | Saturday 19 | Sunday 20 | Monday 21 | Tuesday 22 | Wednesday 23 | Thursday 24 | Friday 25 | Saturday 26 | Sunday 27 | Mon 28 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | |
Rating (10 max) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wave Height (m) & direction (?) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Period(s) (?) | 15 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 15 | 11 | 15 | 15 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 18 | 18 | 12 | 20 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 16 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 20 | 12 | 18 | 18 | 10 | 16 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 18 |
Wave (?)Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Energy (?) | 142 | 225 | 215 | 147 | 158 | 115 | 119 | 109 | 110 | 96 | 145 | 196 | 193 | 154 | 150 | 174 | 216 | 256 | 302 | 261 | 298 | 326 | 495 | 347 | 398 | 208 | 298 | 392 | 356 | 356 | 327 | 493 | 634 | 614 | 670 | 528 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wind State (?) onshore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore offshore glassy | off | cross | cross | cross- off | cross- on | cross | glass | cross- on | cross | glass | on | cross- on | glass | cross- on | cross- on | glass | cross- on | cross | cross- off | cross | cross- off | cross- off | cross | cross- off | cross- off | cross- off | cross- off | off | cross- on | cross- on | glass | glass | cross- off | off | cross- on | cross- on |
High Tide / height (m) | 11:42PM 1.92 | 3:25PM 1.28 | 12:15AM 1.87 | 1:00AM 1.81 | 2:12AM 1.75 | 7:32PM 1.47 | 3:47AM 1.72 | 7:21PM 1.55 | 5:14AM 1.74 | 7:31PM 1.67 | 6:25AM 1.77 | 7:50PM 1.82 | 7:28AM 1.80 | 8:14PM 2.00 | 8:27AM 1.80 | 8:43PM 2.17 | 9:25AM 1.77 | 9:16PM 2.31 | 10:23AM 1.72 | 9:52PM 2.39 | 11:24AM 1.63 | |||||||||||||||
Low Tide / height (m) | 7:39AM 0.51 | 4:50PM 1.27 | 8:44AM 0.55 | 9:57AM 0.55 | 11:02AM 0.51 | 10:07PM 1.44 | 11:53AM 0.46 | 11:50PM 1.30 | 12:34PM 0.43 | 12:51AM 1.09 | 1:12PM 0.42 | 1:42AM 0.84 | 1:47PM 0.46 | 2:30AM 0.57 | 2:23PM 0.54 | 3:18AM 0.32 | 2:59PM 0.66 | 4:07AM 0.12 | 3:36PM 0.79 | 4:57AM 0.00 | 4:15PM 0.93 | |||||||||||||||
Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | Saturday 19 | Sunday 20 | Monday 21 | Tuesday 22 | Wednesday 23 | Thursday 24 | Friday 25 | Saturday 26 | Sunday 27 | Mon 28 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sunrise | - | 6:26 | - | - | 6:24 | - | - | 6:24 | - | - | 6:22 | - | - | 6:20 | - | - | 6:20 | - | - | 6:18 | - | - | 6:18 | - | - | 6:16 | - | - | 6:15 | - | - | 6:13 | - | - | 6:13 | - |
| Sunset | - | - | 7:32 | - | - | 7:34 | - | - | 7:34 | - | - | 7:35 | - | - | 7:36 | - | - | 7:37 | - | - | 7:37 | - | - | 7:37 | - | - | 7:38 | - | - | 7:39 | - | - | 7:40 | - | - | 7:42 |
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Rain (mm) | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Temp. °C | 14 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 13 | 18 | 20 | 15 | 19 | 19 | 15 | 20 | 21 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 12 | 17 | 21 | 10 | 17 | 20 | 10 | 17 | 20 | 12 | 17 | 18 | 13 | 14 | 17 | 12 | 16 | 18 |
| Feels °C (?) | 13 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 14 | 16 | 11 | 17 | 18 | 13 | 18 | 17 | 14 | 18 | 19 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 9 | 14 | 16 | 6 | 14 | 14 | 5 | 13 | 16 | 9 | 15 | 16 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 15 |
Short Range Forecast: Mostly dry. Warm (max 20°C on Sat afternoon, min 9°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 3-6 Weather Summary Mostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Mon afternoon, min 11°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 6-9 Weather Summary Mostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Wed afternoon, min 8°C on Tue night). Winds increasing (light winds from the NNW on Wed morning, fresh winds from the NW by Thu afternoon). | Long Range Forecast: Mostly dry. Very mild (max 18°C on Sat afternoon, min 9°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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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 El Capitan 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 El Capitan Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for El Capitan provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 12 days. A general guide to surfing at El Capitan can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our El Capitan 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 (El Capitan) 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 El Capitan 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.
El Capitan is 16 km (10 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.
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