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PURESURFERSLIVE SURF ATLAS
CALIFORNIA / Gaviota edgeSPOT / 652

Refugio.

Shelter, shape, and a patient read.

Right34.461° N / 120.073° W
Color satellite and aerial imagery centered on the approximate Refugio catalogue locationSATELLITE / N ↑
Satellite / aerial view · centred on the approximate catalogue pin. Not live imagery.
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Approximate catalogue pin · check the actual shoreline. © OpenStreetMap contributors
Open Refugio on the map ↗Best surf near me

Forecast & tide at a glance

Estimated surf face · feet · Pacific time. The existing PureSurfers face-estimation engine; not a measured or calibrated breaking-wave report.

Estimated surf face2.0 ftForecast for Wed Nov 11, 6:00pm Pacific
Coastal wind2.9 mphSW from
NOAA tide reference0.0 ftMLLW · Santa Barbara

READ THE INDIVIDUAL SWELLS

Swell by swell.

Offshore component height (Hs), not surf-face height. Directions are where waves come from. Component heights do not add together.

Wed Nov 11, 6:00pm Pacific

GFS · 4 components
Primary swell
3.0ft Hs

WNW from · 282° · 12.6 s

3.0 feet
Wind sea
0.0ft Hs

No energy reported for this component

0.0 feet
Secondary swell
0.8ft Hs

SW from · 216° · 13.4 s

0.8 feet
Tertiary swell
0.0ft Hs

No energy reported for this component

0.0 feet
MFWAM · 2 components
Primary swell
4.5ft Hs

W from · 280° · 9.8 s

4.5 feet
Wind sea
0.0ft Hs

No energy reported for this component

0.0 feet

Each model supplies its own partitions. Missing components remain unavailable; another model’s primary swell is not automatically the same wave system.

Coastal wind retrieved Wed Nov 11, 6:30pm. This is regional modeled wind, not a beach measurement.

Source retrievals: GFS Nov 11, 6:30pm · ECMWF Nov 11, 6:30pm · MFWAM Nov 11, 6:30pm. Retrieval time is not the model issue time. This page combines all available cached model families; map model selections are separate.

Tide predictions: Santa Barbara, 35 km reference; retrieved Wed Nov 11, 12:45pm. Station predictions can differ locally.

Seven-day overview

06:00–19:00 forecast hours; daily values are not a full-day maximum.
Pacific dayEstimated surf faceMean windHours available
Wed Nov 112.0 ft4.3 mph14/14
Thu Nov 122.0 ft9.1 mph14/14
Fri Nov 132.8 ft7.4 mph14/14
Sat Nov 144.7 ft5.4 mph14/14
Sun Nov 152.7 ft4.3 mph14/14
Mon Nov 163.8 ft2.5 mph14/14
Tue Nov 172.7 ft5.1 mph14/14
Hourly details · next 72 hours
Pacific timeEstimated surf faceModel rangeSet proxySwell fromWindTide MLLWModels
Wed 6:00pm2.0 ft1.3–2.9 ft3.0 ftWNW · 12.7 s2.9 mph SW0.0 ft3
Wed 7:00pm2.0 ft1.3–2.8 ft3.0 ftWNW · 12.5 s2.1 mph NNW0.5 ft3
Wed 8:00pm1.9 ft1.3–2.7 ft2.9 ftWNW · 12.4 s0.8 mph NE1.3 ft3
Wed 9:00pm1.9 ft1.3–2.6 ft2.8 ftWNW · 12.3 s3.3 mph NNW2.2 ft3
Wed 10:00pm1.8 ft1.2–2.5 ft2.7 ftWNW · 12.3 s4.2 mph NW2.9 ft3
Wed 11:00pm1.8 ft1.2–2.4 ft2.6 ftWNW · 12.2 s5.6 mph NNW3.3 ft3
Thu 12:00am1.7 ft1.2–2.4 ft2.6 ftWNW · 12.2 s3.7 mph NNW3.4 ft3
Thu 1:00am1.7 ft1.2–2.3 ft2.5 ftWNW · 12.1 s5.5 mph WSW3.4 ft3
Thu 2:00am1.7 ft1.2–2.3 ft2.5 ftWNW · 12.1 s4.1 mph SW3.2 ft3
Thu 3:00am1.8 ft1.2–2.3 ft2.7 ftW · 12.2 s4.9 mph SSW3.0 ft3
Thu 4:00am1.8 ft1.2–2.3 ft2.7 ftW · 12.2 s5.2 mph SSW3.0 ft3
Thu 5:00am1.8 ft1.2–2.3 ft2.7 ftW · 12.2 s4.9 mph SSW3.3 ft3
Thu 6:00am1.7 ft1.2–2.3 ft2.6 ftWNW · 12.2 s4.8 mph S3.7 ft3
Thu 7:00am1.7 ft1.3–2.3 ft2.6 ftWNW · 12.2 s5.3 mph SSE4.3 ft3
Thu 8:00am1.8 ft1.3–2.3 ft2.7 ftWNW · 12.2 s7.4 mph SSE4.9 ft3
Thu 9:00am1.8 ft1.4–2.4 ft2.8 ftWNW · 12.2 s8.9 mph SE5.4 ft3
Thu 10:00am1.9 ft1.4–2.4 ft2.8 ftWNW · 12.2 s9.6 mph SSE5.6 ft3
Thu 11:00am1.9 ft1.5–2.5 ft2.9 ftWNW · 12.3 s13.6 mph SSE5.4 ft3
Thu 12:00pm2.0 ft1.5–2.5 ft2.9 ftWNW · 12.4 s12.5 mph S4.8 ft3
Thu 1:00pm2.0 ft1.6–2.6 ft3.0 ftWNW · 12.6 s10.9 mph S3.9 ft3
Thu 2:00pm2.0 ft1.6–2.6 ft3.1 ftWNW · 12.7 s9.4 mph S2.8 ft3
Thu 3:00pm2.1 ft1.6–2.6 ft3.1 ftWNW · 12.8 s8.9 mph SSE1.7 ft3
Thu 4:00pm2.1 ft1.7–2.7 ft3.2 ftWNW · 13.0 s8.8 mph SSE0.8 ft3
Thu 5:00pm2.2 ft1.8–2.7 ft3.3 ftWNW · 13.1 s7.6 mph SE0.2 ft3
Thu 6:00pm2.2 ft1.8–2.8 ft3.3 ftWNW · 13.2 s9.4 mph E0.0 ft3
Thu 7:00pm2.3 ft1.9–2.8 ft3.4 ftWNW · 13.4 s10.3 mph ENE0.3 ft3
Thu 8:00pm2.3 ft1.9–2.9 ft3.5 ftWNW · 13.5 s9.0 mph ENE0.8 ft3
Thu 9:00pm2.4 ft1.9–3.0 ft3.6 ftWNW · 13.6 s9.4 mph E1.6 ft3
Thu 10:00pm2.4 ft1.9–3.1 ft3.7 ftWNW · 13.7 s9.7 mph ESE2.3 ft3
Thu 11:00pm2.5 ft1.9–3.2 ft3.8 ftWNW · 13.6 s10.4 mph E2.9 ft3
Fri 12:00am2.6 ft2.0–3.3 ft3.9 ftW · 13.5 s12.2 mph E3.2 ft3
Fri 1:00am2.6 ft2.0–3.4 ft3.9 ftW · 13.3 s12.4 mph ESE3.4 ft3
Fri 2:00am2.7 ft2.0–3.5 ft4.0 ftW · 13.2 s12.1 mph ESE3.3 ft3
Fri 3:00am2.8 ft2.1–3.5 ft4.1 ftW · 13.1 s10.2 mph E3.2 ft3
Fri 4:00am2.8 ft2.2–3.6 ft4.2 ftW · 13.0 s10.2 mph ESE3.2 ft3
Fri 5:00am2.8 ft2.2–3.6 ft4.3 ftW · 12.9 s13.0 mph E3.3 ft3
Fri 6:00am2.8 ft2.3–3.6 ft4.3 ftW · 12.8 s9.5 mph ESE3.5 ft3
Fri 7:00am2.9 ft2.3–3.6 ft4.3 ftW · 12.8 s13.2 mph E4.0 ft3
Fri 8:00am2.8 ft2.3–3.5 ft4.3 ftW · 12.7 s9.6 mph E4.5 ft3
Fri 9:00am2.8 ft2.3–3.5 ft4.2 ftW · 12.7 s8.6 mph E4.9 ft3
Fri 10:00am2.8 ft2.4–3.4 ft4.2 ftW · 12.6 s10.2 mph E5.2 ft3
Fri 11:00am2.8 ft2.4–3.4 ft4.2 ftW · 12.6 s14.0 mph SE5.2 ft3
Fri 12:00pm2.8 ft2.4–3.4 ft4.2 ftW · 12.6 s7.8 mph ESE4.9 ft3
Fri 1:00pm2.8 ft2.5–3.4 ft4.2 ftW · 12.5 s4.0 mph NNE4.3 ft3
Fri 2:00pm2.8 ft2.5–3.4 ft4.2 ftW · 12.4 s3.4 mph WSW3.4 ft3
Fri 3:00pm2.8 ft2.5–3.4 ft4.3 ftW · 12.3 s6.9 mph WSW2.5 ft3
Fri 4:00pm2.8 ft2.5–3.4 ft4.3 ftW · 12.2 s5.7 mph SW1.5 ft3
Fri 5:00pm2.9 ft2.6–3.5 ft4.3 ftW · 12.0 s4.6 mph SW0.8 ft3
Fri 6:00pm2.9 ft2.6–3.5 ft4.3 ftW · 11.9 s3.1 mph SW0.3 ft3
Fri 7:00pm2.9 ft2.5–3.5 ft4.3 ftW · 11.7 s2.9 mph SW0.3 ft3
Fri 8:00pm2.9 ft2.5–3.6 ft4.4 ftW · 11.5 s1.6 mph SSW0.5 ft3
Fri 9:00pm3.0 ft2.5–3.7 ft4.5 ftW · 11.4 s2.5 mph SSE1.1 ft3
Fri 10:00pm3.0 ft2.4–3.8 ft4.5 ftW · 11.4 s2.6 mph WSW1.7 ft3
Fri 11:00pm3.1 ft2.4–3.9 ft4.6 ftW · 11.7 s1.6 mph SSE2.3 ft3
Sat 12:00am3.2 ft2.4–4.1 ft4.7 ftW · 12.2 s2.7 mph SSW2.9 ft3
Sat 1:00am3.2 ft2.4–4.2 ft4.9 ftWNW · 12.7 s1.2 mph E3.2 ft3
Sat 2:00am3.4 ft2.4–4.5 ft5.1 ftWNW · 13.2 s2.5 mph NNE3.4 ft3
Sat 3:00am3.7 ft2.5–4.7 ft5.6 ftWNW · 13.7 s5.4 mph NW3.4 ft3
Sat 4:00am3.9 ft2.7–4.9 ft5.9 ftWNW · 14.1 s6.9 mph NW3.3 ft3
Sat 5:00am4.1 ft2.9–5.2 ft6.2 ftWNW · 14.5 s6.3 mph NW3.3 ft3
Sat 6:00am4.3 ft3.2–5.4 ft6.4 ftWNW · 14.9 s6.1 mph NNW3.5 ft3
Sat 7:00am4.4 ft3.4–5.6 ft6.7 ftWNW · 15.2 s5.9 mph NNW3.7 ft3
Sat 8:00am4.6 ft3.7–5.8 ft6.9 ftWNW · 15.4 s5.4 mph NNW4.0 ft3
Sat 9:00am4.7 ft3.8–5.9 ft7.0 ftWNW · 15.6 s4.9 mph NNW4.4 ft3
Sat 10:00am4.8 ft3.9–6.0 ft7.1 ftWNW · 15.8 s4.3 mph NW4.7 ft3
Sat 11:00am4.8 ft4.0–6.1 ft7.2 ftWNW · 15.8 s4.6 mph WNW4.9 ft3
Sat 12:00pm4.8 ft4.0–6.2 ft7.2 ftWNW · 15.8 s5.2 mph WNW4.8 ft3
Sat 1:00pm4.8 ft3.9–6.2 ft7.3 ftWNW · 15.7 s4.6 mph W4.5 ft3
Sat 2:00pm4.8 ft4.0–6.2 ft7.2 ftWNW · 15.6 s4.8 mph WNW3.9 ft3
Sat 3:00pm4.8 ft3.9–6.2 ft7.1 ftWNW · 15.4 s5.3 mph WNW3.1 ft3
Sat 4:00pm4.7 ft3.8–6.2 ft7.1 ftWNW · 15.2 s6.8 mph WNW2.3 ft3
Sat 5:00pm4.6 ft3.8–6.1 ft7.0 ftWNW · 15.0 s7.0 mph NW1.5 ft3
Sat 6:00pm4.6 ft3.8–6.0 ft6.9 ftWNW · 14.9 s5.3 mph NNW0.9 ft3

Model spread is not a confidence interval. Tide and wind are context, not new corrections to surf size. Larger sets and changing hazards remain possible.

This page reads the shared cache first. Refresh requests only this spot’s existing regional samples.

Know the spot

A mellow, scenic longboard right inside the state beach cove.

Break type
Point
Wave direction
Right
Reported difficulty
Beginner–intermediate when small
Bottom
Rock & sand
Reported swell preference
W, about 3–4 ft+ offshore energy
Reported tide preference
Low–mid

Generally more forgiving than El Cap. Outside kelp/reef lines and temporary inside sandbars can behave like separate peaks; this marker is the classic inside point.

Before paddling out: Rocks, campground traffic, currents with size, seasonal facilities.

Refugio State Beach Documented lineup

Source references

Provenance is not proof that every inherited claim or current access condition has been rechecked.

THE FIELD GUIDE / Refugio

Read this stretch of coast.

What defines this setup

Refugio is catalogued as point, with right waves over rock & sand. Those details explain why the same offshore height can feel different here than at the next beach. Use the map to orient yourself, then watch how the sets actually meet the bottom and where the ride opens or closes. The catalogue is a starting description, not a surveyed takeoff.

What to compare before you go

The retained swell preference is W, about 3–4 ft+ offshore energy; the reported tide preference is Low–mid. Start with the component panel: check whether the stronger incoming swell is in that directional window and whether a second system approaches from a different angle. Then compare wind and water level for the same hour. These are planning comparisons, not new corrections applied to the displayed surf-face estimate.

A useful shore check

The reported difficulty is Beginner–intermediate when small. Look at the interval between sets, the distance a surfer drifts while waiting, the room available to enter and exit, and whether the waves connect through the intended section. Catalogue hazards include Rocks, campground traffic, currents with size, seasonal facilities. If the session you see differs from the forecast, record that difference with the time and setup; it is information for the next visit, not a reason to force today’s session.

A useful note for next time

Record the section you actually surfed, the time, incoming swell direction and period, wind and tide trend. Add what the wave did: connected sections, closeouts, drift or exposed obstacles. Comparing that observation with the same model next time is more useful than treating one colored number as the whole session.

Camera references nearby

No nearby camera reference in the current registry. The atlas camera layer may have other regional views.

Links to third-party camera pages, not owned feeds. Proximity does not confirm the camera sees this break. Playback and image freshness have not been verified by this page.

Make the next session easier

Lineup etiquette · Paddling technique · How these forecasts work

Nearby spots to compare

PureSurfers is built by Peter Ochabski. Spot profiles combine retained sources and contributor observations; this is not a claim he has surfed or verified every entry.

COASTAL WAVE GUIDANCE

Waves at the model cells

3.08–6.50 ft

Significant wave height (Hs) before the legacy spot reduction. This is not a measured breaking-face or set range.

Nearshore and buoy trends load here. Coverage and observation times are shown separately.