Gaviota · Santa Barbara County · California
Refugio State Beach Surf Report & Forecast, Gaviota, CA
Refugio State Beach, Gaviota, California: 1–2 ft, knee high, at 10 pm PST on Monday, Nov 9, rated Poor to Fair. The main swell is 1.3 ft at 13 seconds from the west-southwest, with a 6 mph offshore wind from the north-northwest, gusting 12 mph. Water is about 72°F, so a 2mm springsuit is the suggestion; the next high tide is 4.3 ft at 10:21 pm.
1–2 ft
knee high
- Swell
- 1.3 ft · 13 s · WSWplus 1.2 ft · 6 s · W
- Wind
- 6 mph (NNW), gusts 12offshore
- Tide
- 4.3 ft fallinghigh 4.3 ft at 10:21 pm
- Water
- 72°F2mm springsuit
- Air
- 65°Ffeels like 58°F
- Sun
- rise 6:28 amset 5 pm
Refugio State Beach surf today and tomorrow
Best-rated hour today at Refugio State Beach: 6 am, Good, on a rising high tide.
Blue band: surf face height from the low end to set waves; dotted: occasional larger sets. Grey line: tide, in feet on the right scale. Colour strip: the hourly rating. Arrows: wind direction and strength, teal when offshore, orange when onshore.
Best-rated hour tomorrow at Refugio State Beach: 2 pm, Fair, on a falling low tide.
Hour by hour as a table, today and tomorrow
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 2 ft | Good | calm | 5.1 ft |
| 7 am | 2 ft | Good | calm | 6.0 ft |
| 8 am | 2 ft | Good | calm | 6.5 ft |
| 9 am | 2 ft | Fair | calm | 6.6 ft |
| 10 am | 2 ft | Good | calm | 6.0 ft |
| 11 am | 2 ft | Fair | 4 mph onshore (SW) | 5.0 ft |
| 12 pm | 2 ft | Good | 5 mph cross-shore (SW) | 3.7 ft |
| 1 pm | 2 ft | Good | 5 mph cross-shore (WSW), gusts 10 | 2.3 ft |
| 2 pm | 2 ft | Good | 6 mph cross-shore (WSW), gusts 11 | 1.1 ft |
| 3 pm | 2 ft | Good | 7 mph cross-shore (W), gusts 13 | 0.4 ft |
| 4 pm | 2 ft | Good | 6 mph cross-shore (W), gusts 12 | 0.2 ft |
| 5 pm | 2 ft | Good | 5 mph cross-shore (NW), gusts 11 | 0.5 ft |
| Time | Surf | Rating | Wind | Tide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 6 mph offshore (NE), gusts 11 | 4.6 ft |
| 7 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 6 mph offshore (NE), gusts 12 | 5.4 ft |
| 8 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 6 mph cross-shore (NE), gusts 11 | 6.1 ft |
| 9 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 5 mph cross-shore (ENE), gusts 10 | 6.4 ft |
| 10 am | 1–2 ft | Poor | 4 mph cross-shore (ESE) | 6.2 ft |
| 11 am | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 5.4 ft |
| 12 pm | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 4.3 ft |
| 1 pm | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 2.9 ft |
| 2 pm | 2 ft | Fair | calm | 1.6 ft |
| 3 pm | 1–2 ft | Poor | calm | 0.6 ft |
| 4 pm | 1 ft | Poor | calm | 0.0 ft |
| 5 pm | 1 ft | Poor | 4 mph cross-shore (WNW) | 0.0 ft |
Refugio State Beach waves today: sets, lulls and how they break
At 10 pm, sets at Refugio State Beach arrive about every minute with about 3 waves each, and the waves are mostly barreling and hollow.
- Set waves
- about 1.8 ft faces
- Waves per set
- about 3
- Sets
- every minute or so, each lasting about 6 s
- Lulls
- about 32 s between breaking waves
- How they break
- Barrelingwhich means the lip pitches out and can throw a barrel
- Shape
- Hollowwhich means throwing, barreling waves
- Breaking
- 11% of waves stand up and break where surfers sitThe rest roll through.
- Along-shore current
- light, about 0.6 mphThis is not a rip current forecast. For rip current risk, see the National Weather Service.
Refugio State Beach surf this weekend and the next 10 days
Next 10 days at Refugio State Beach: the biggest day is Saturday, Nov 14 at 5–8 ft, and the best-rated day is Saturday, Nov 14 (Epic). This weekend: Saturday, Nov 14, 5–8 ft and Epic; Sunday, Nov 15, 3–5 ft and Great.
Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24
Days 11–16 for Refugio State Beach are in the Current app with a Premium subscription.
Bars: surf face height from the low end to set waves, by day. Colour strip: the day's best rating. Arrows: main swell direction. Shaded: this weekend.
The 10-day forecast as a table, with swell and wind
| Day | Surf | Rating | Main swell | Wind am | Wind pm | Best time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | 2 ft | Good | 1.5 ft · 16 s · WSW | calm | 6 mph cross-shore (WSW), gusts 11 | 6 am |
| Tue, Nov 10 | 1–2 ft | Fair | 1.7 ft · 13 s · WSW | 6 mph cross-shore (NE), gusts 11 | calm | 2 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | 1–2 ft | Poor | 1.2 ft · 13 s · WSW | 5 mph cross-shore (E) | 5 mph onshore (S) | 4 pm |
| Thu, Nov 12 | 1–3 ft | Good | 1.7 ft · 13 s · WSW | 4 mph onshore (SSE), gusts 9 | 8 mph onshore (S), gusts 17 | 5 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | 3–4 ft | Great | 3.3 ft · 15 s · WSW | calm | 7 mph onshore (SSW), gusts 13 | 8 am |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 5–8 ft | Epic | 6.0 ft · 15 s · WSW | 7 mph offshore (NNW), gusts 12 | 13 mph cross-shore (WNW), gusts 21 | 10 am |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 3–5 ft | Great | 4.8 ft · 17 s · WSW | 5 mph offshore (N), gusts 10 | 4 mph cross-shore (WSW), gusts 9 | 7 am |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 3–7 ft | Great | 2.4 ft · 15 s · W | 6 mph offshore (NNW), gusts 13 | 16 mph offshore (NW), gusts 31 | 10 am |
| Tue, Nov 17 | 4–7 ft | Great | — | 10 mph offshore (NNW) | 17 mph cross-shore (NW), gusts 22 | 7 am |
| Wed, Nov 18 | 2–4 ft | Great | — | 9 mph offshore (NNW) | 14 mph offshore (NNW), gusts 19 | 7 am |
| Thu, Nov 19 – Tue, Nov 24 | Days 11–16 for Refugio State Beach are in the Current app with a Premium subscription. Get the app | |||||
Refugio State Beach tide chart and tide times
Tides at Refugio State Beach today, Monday, Nov 9: high 6.6 ft at 8:34 am, low 0.2 ft at 3:54 pm and high 4.3 ft at 10:21 pm. At 10 pm the tide is 4.3 ft and falling.
Refugio State Beach tide chart, November 2026
| Day | Tides |
|---|---|
| Mon, Nov 9 | High 6.6 ft at 8:34 amLow 0.2 ft at 3:54 pmHigh 4.3 ft at 10:21 pm |
| Tue, Nov 10 | Low 2.9 ft at 2:52 amHigh 6.4 ft at 9:05 amLow -0.1 ft at 4:26 pmHigh 4.0 ft at 11:09 pm |
| Wed, Nov 11 | Low 3.1 ft at 3:16 amHigh 6.1 ft at 9:33 amLow 0.1 ft at 5:11 pm |
| Thu, Nov 12 | High 3.7 ft at 12:13 amLow 3.3 ft at 3:32 amHigh 6.0 ft at 10:06 amLow 0.5 ft at 5:56 pm |
| Fri, Nov 13 | High 3.8 ft at 1:23 amLow 3.7 ft at 3:52 amHigh 5.9 ft at 10:42 amLow 0.8 ft at 6:48 pm |
| Sat, Nov 14 | High 3.9 ft at 2:59 amLow 3.9 ft at 4:34 amHigh 5.5 ft at 11:22 amLow 0.9 ft at 7:44 pm |
| Sun, Nov 15 | High 3.9 ft at 4:18 amLow 3.9 ft at 5:44 amHigh 4.9 ft at 12:12 pmLow 0.9 ft at 8:38 pm |
| Mon, Nov 16 | High 4.0 ft at 4:53 amLow 3.8 ft at 8:17 amHigh 4.4 ft at 1:25 pmLow 1.0 ft at 9:28 pm |
| Tue, Nov 17 | High 4.3 ft at 5:11 amLow 3.4 ft at 10:14 amHigh 4.1 ft at 2:52 pm |
Tide predictions, not observations. Heights in feet above MLLW.
Refugio State Beach water temperature
The water temperature at Refugio State Beach is about 72°F on Monday, Nov 9. With the air feeling like 58°F and a 6 mph wind, a 2mm springsuit is the suggestion. Over the next week the water stays between 70 and 73°F.
Water temperature is a forecast for the water at this spot, not a buoy reading. The wetsuit suggestion uses Billabong's wetsuit temperature scale, adjusted for air temperature and wind.
Surf spots near Refugio State Beach
- Tajiguas1.7 mi W · 2–3 ft · Great
- El Capitan2.8 mi E · 1–2 ft · Poor
- Gaviota9.0 mi W · 2–3 ft · Great
- Haskell's Beach9.0 mi ESE · 2–3 ft · Good
- Ellwood11 mi ESE · 3 ft · Good
- Sands Beach11 mi ESE · 3 ft · Good
Rated right now. The Current app animates the surf itself on a live map of the whole coast. See the app →
About Refugio State Beach
Refugio State Beach is a point break in Gaviota, Santa Barbara County, California, facing south.
Follow Refugio State Beach in the Current app
The first 10 days are free, and Premium adds days 11–16.
Forecasts are estimates. Never rely on them for safety. For rip current risk and beach hazards, check the National Weather Service. Forecasts from Current's novel physics simulation. No AI. No black boxes. Ocean and weather data: NOAA (U.S. government data). NOAA does not endorse this site.