North County SD

Surf was fun, ranged from knee high to chest high. Definitely good to get some hometown waves.

I'm back in IV and will take some pictures once the surf gets good.


It might be surfable tomorrow, but these winds need to die down!

I am back in San Diego ...

I'll take some shots of the waves down here later this week ... I'm kinda scared to surf the poo water though!

Yesterday was still fun, today might have some leftovers

Paddled out on a longboard at sunset yesterday at dev ... caught about 7 waves and managed to catch a couple waist high sets that made the session worth it

Today will be smaller, but there might be enough leftovers to make it worth paddling out.

2:00pm Photo Update - Tide still too high

Took these shots from 1:45 - 2:00pm ... there's definitely some surf, occasional overhead sets, but most of the sets at Devereux are just mushing out after they pitch. Sands only had a couple guys out, there were a couple waves to be had, but most of them were closeouts. (Sands can't really handle the size).

Low tides a little after 6 ... so by sunset the surf will have the best conditions.


This longboarder got a nice ride in front of the jailhouse:

Here's a Video closer at the 1st point of Devereux:

This was one of the better waves to come through at Sands (nobody out at this peak):

 There were only two guys out at Sands, trying to catch this peak ...

Surf Has Arrived - Mushy high tide sets

Head high, mushy high tide sets out at Sands/Devereux ... expect it to get good this afternoon with the lowering tide.

I'll probably have some pictures of it this afternoon, in case you are too lazy to check it yourself ... but seriously, get it while you can, because I'm expecting it to back off on Friday and then we have some wet weather forecasted for next week.

Here are the tides today:

High Tides	Low Tides
12:31 AM (3.7ft)   --- (---ft)	4:51 AM (2.8ft)   6:23 PM (-0.1ft)

There Will be Surf tomorrow - Get on it!

I guarantee there will be surf tomorrow ... I won't have any morning pictures (have a final) but it will be worth going out and seeing it for yourself.

Sorry I've been MIA for the past few weeks. I got tired of posting photos of ankle high waves, (and you probably got tired of looking at them!), and we went through a real flat spell for a while. There were a couple ride-able days that were probably worth posting about, but I've been cracking down on the studies.

Since the waves have been so flat lately, you should check out this workout plan for surfers to help you out for when it actually starts to pick up again (like tomorrow) ...

I strongly recommend this DVD, I know it's helped me out with not only paddling into waves, but also with creating stronger cutbacks and throwing more spray.

Still no surf today ... Went to Sands and Devereux a little after 2pm but it was flat as The Great Lakes. I took this screenshot of MagicSeaweed on my phone, because I was just curious to see what they were calling for.

Magic seaweed was giving today three stars ... 4 ft. at 13 seconds ... HA yeah right ...

Terribly innacurate!

This is why you can't trust a surf forecasting website based out of the UK. This is obviously not 3 star worthy:

This wave was the "biggest" of the 15 minutes I sat and watched the surf today (Sands).

There was actually one guy out way down the beach, but he was catching ankle high waves that lasted no longer then two seconds.. Woohooo, good for him... At least someone was stoked to surf.

Here's Devereux .... low tide, super small, barely ankle high ... nobody out:

Nobody out, barely ankle high (Devereux).

The next swell should arrive on Sunday but unless you go up to Jalama, or down to Ventura, don't expect much surf.

The longterm forecast is also looking pretty dismal. We are entering a pattern that generally produces poor surf for the long run. El Nino was great to us last year ... unfortunately we get to deal with a La Nina this year which means that the Jetstream and Stormtrack will keep storms at higher latitudes and produce steeper swell angles that will just bypass Santa Barbara.

I'm really itching to see some good waves soon, nobody wants to read a blog about small surf!

Sands and Devereux (barely rideable) at 9:30pm

Here are the tides for Goleta today:

High Tides	Low Tides
6:31 AM (5.2ft)   7:19 PM (3.7ft)	12:02 AM (1.7ft)   1:17 PM (0.8ft)

Still pretty small today, I don't think this swell will fill in much more. It's supposed to be backing off today and there should be another one filling in on Sunday. The angles of these swells are all too steep to provide us with anything exciting.

So the depressing fall continues ...


Three guys out at sands struggling for waves at Sands this morning:

One lonely longboarder out at Devereux ... knee high at best.

The afternoon might pick up a bit, but not by much, maybe an occasional waist or thigh high set if you hit it at the right tide.

Pesky's, Sands, And Devereux This Afternoon (3:30-4:00pm)

Not much surf this afternoon, hopefully it will pick up tomorrow.

Here are/were the tides for today:

High Tides	Low Tides
6:08 AM (4.9ft)   6:32 PM (3.7ft)	--- (---ft)   12:43 PM (1.5ft)

Here's Pesky's at about 3:30pm, tide was medium-low, nobody out (& for good reason). Ankle to Achilles heel High at best ...

Here's a shot of Sands around 3:45. Two guys just paddled out down the beach as I arrived. Nothing to get excited about. Maybe ... maybe thigh high on the sets. Mainly ankle - knee though...

Checked Devereux last around 4 o'clock ... nobody out, but there were a few waves that could have been ridden on a massive log:

And here's a video of dev showing how slow it was .... 

Swell Height for today ... Obviously there is not enough West in this swell to hit us perfectly here in Isla Vista. The swell should fill in a little more tomorrow, getting bigger later, and then back off Thursday. Don't expect too much tomorrow. Maybe some consistent waist high sets at best. Hopefully, I will wake up early and have some pictures for ya in the morning.

Isla Vista Surf - I'll Check the Surf So You Don't Have To

Let's face it, there are no good surf reports for Isla Vista. Sure, there is Magic Seaweed, but that only gives you a report that half the time isn't even close to accurate. And Surfline is hands down the greatest surf forecasting website known to man, but there are no cams for the IV/SB area. So all of this has led me to take on a little personal project of starting an Isla Vista Surf blog.

But who am I and why should you bother following this? I'm a Geography Major at UCSB studying GIS, Meteorology, and Surf Forecasting. Since the age of 13 I've been surfing regularly; thrusters, quads, longboards, retro single-fins, hybrids, fishes ... I don't discriminate. (Although I do discriminate against any SUP that stays at one peak for more than five minutes, jerks ... but I'll save that rant for another day)

Anyways, I'm basically going to provide quasi-regular posts (2-3 times a week) on the current surf conditions in Isla Vista complete with photos. I'll wake my ass up early, snap a couple pictures of Sands, Devereux, and Campus Point and then post them online with a brief analysis. Also, I will provide a brief forecast for the near future.

Pictures of the surf will provide you with the most accurate depiction of the surf. Magicseaweed might say that it's 3 ft at 12 seconds, but a picture is the best way to see what the surf looks like without even having to roll out of bed.

If you have ever been to Surf Shot for San Diego surf forecasting, then you know how awesome it is to wake up early and see photos of the morning waves. I'm going for something like that, only on a smaller scale and in Blog form.