What is the best tide for Hammonds Reef?

Hammonds Reef works best on mid to high tide. Tide matters because depth is what trips a wave: as the water fills in, the break slides shoreward onto a different part of the bottom, and over a shallow bank enough water stops it breaking at all. Our forecast solves each hour at that hour's real water level rather than assuming one.

What swell direction is best for Hammonds Reef?

W–NW that wraps the point suits Hammonds Reef best. The direction that matters is the one at the break, not the one on the buoy: the seafloor bends swell on its way in, so a spot can work on an angle the open coast is missing. We model that bending for each break rather than reporting the offshore direction.

Is Hammonds Reef good for beginners?

Hammonds Reef suits advanced surfers, over cobble reef. That is the wave this bottom makes on an average day, and it moves: the same break is a different proposition on a bigger swell or a different tide, so read the day's forecast rather than the label.

What is the bottom like at Hammonds Reef?

cobble reef. It is the reason this break behaves the way it does: the shape of the seabed decides where the swell focuses, where it trips, and whether it spills or pitches. We model Hammonds Reef on real 10-foot bathymetry instead of treating the seafloor as a slope.

Hammonds Reef Surf Report & Forecast

Santa Barbara's best reef right.

2 ftmax ~3 ft

Good · plunging

Modelled on real 10-foot bathymetry. These figures cover size, shape and wind. Whether the wave is makeable comes from the simulation.

Swell: 1.3 ft at 12s from the S
Wind: 7 mph NE cross-shore
Tide: 0.5 ft
Break depth: 4 ft
Power: 1 kW/m
Water: 71°F · trunks

Updated Aug 26, 12:40 AM PDT · 2 swell trains · how this is calculated

How Hammonds Reef is breaking right now

Loading Hammonds Reef…

Live · Hammonds Reef, solving nowOpen Hammonds Reef on the map

Solved in your browser from this spot’s seafloor and current swell

What the seafloor does to this wave

A cut straight out from Hammonds Reef, solved on the real seafloor at this hour’s swell and tide.

Why Hammonds Reef looks like this right now

The numbers above, and what each one is actually doing to the wave.

Two swells at once
1.3 ft at 12s from the S carrying 76% of the energy, plus 0.8 ft at 5s from the SW (25%).
The long-period train is the one building your wave. It holds the most energy and reaches deepest. The shorter ones cross it, which is what makes the surface look busy and the takeoff shift around. Why period matters more than height →
The seafloor is neutral here
Kr 0.96 · 92% of modelled rays break.
Energy arrives roughly as it left deep water: this bottom neither concentrates the swell nor fans it out, so what the buoy sees is close to what you get. Why two breaks a mile apart differ →
Where it trips
0.5 ft of tide; waves are breaking in about 4 ft of water.
A wave breaks when the water gets shallow enough relative to its height, so that depth is a contour on the seafloor, and the tide slides the whole break up and down it through the day. Same swell, different spot, a few hours apart. How the tide moves the break →
Wind is cross-shore
7 mph from the NE, against a shoreline facing 167°.
Running across the face rather than into or against it. Less destructive than a straight onshore, but it puts a texture on the wall and can make the peak harder to read.
How the sets come
About one set every 2 min, roughly 10 waves in it.
Swell arrives in groups, not evenly. That spacing is what you are really timing your paddle-out to, and it's why the lineup can look flat for minutes and then produce five waves at once. Why period matters more than height →

Hammonds Reef surf forecast, next seven days

Holding — 0–3.1 ft, no notable swell in the window

Seven-day surf forecast for Hammonds Reef: wave height, best window, swell, wind and tide.
Day	Surf	Best window	Swell	Wind	Tide
Wed, Aug 26	2-3 ft	6am to 10amGood	1.6 ft at 13s S	5 mph cross-shore	Low -0.3 ft 3amHigh 4.0 ft 10amLow 2.0 ft 3pmHigh 5.8 ft 9pm
Thu, Aug 27	1-2 ft	6am to 10amFair-Good	1.0 ft at 12s S	5 mph cross-shore	Low -0.3 ft 4amHigh 4.2 ft 10amLow 1.7 ft 3pmHigh 5.7 ft 9pm
Fri, Aug 28	1 ft	2pm to 7pmGood	0.5 ft at 17s S	8 mph offshore	Low -0.2 ft 4amHigh 4.5 ft 10amLow 1.4 ft 4pmHigh 5.4 ft 10pm
Sat, Aug 29	1-2 ft	2pm to 5pmGood	0.7 ft at 17s S	8 mph cross-shore	Low 0.1 ft 4amHigh 4.7 ft 11amLow 1.2 ft 4pmHigh 5.1 ft 10pm
Sun, Aug 30	1-2 ft	8amFair-Good	0.7 ft at 15s S	2 mph cross-shore	Low 0.5 ft 5amHigh 5.0 ft 11amLow 1.0 ft 5pmHigh 4.5 ft 11pm
Mon, Aug 31	2-3 ft	8am to 2pmFair-Good	1.5 ft at 13s S	8 mph cross-shore	Low 0.9 ft 5amHigh 5.2 ft 12pmLow 0.9 ft 6pm
Tue, Sep 1	2 ft	8am to 2pmFair-Good	1.3 ft at 13s S	2 mph cross-shore	High 3.9 ft 12amLow 1.5 ft 6amHigh 5.3 ft 12pmLow 0.9 ft 7pm

Daylight hours only. The best window is the run of hours the model rates highest that day.

How Hammonds Reef works

A cobble reef off Montecito that produces the cleanest right in the Santa Barbara area on a solid W/NW — long, tapering walls and a famously protective local crew.

Bottom: cobble reef
Best tide: mid to high
Best swell: W–NW that wraps the point
Suits: advanced

Common questions about Hammonds Reef

What is the best tide for Hammonds Reef?: Hammonds Reef works best on mid to high tide. Tide matters because depth is what trips a wave: as the water fills in, the break slides shoreward onto a different part of the bottom, and over a shallow bank enough water stops it breaking at all. Our forecast solves each hour at that hour's real water level rather than assuming one.
What swell direction is best for Hammonds Reef?: W–NW that wraps the point suits Hammonds Reef best. The direction that matters is the one at the break, not the one on the buoy: the seafloor bends swell on its way in, so a spot can work on an angle the open coast is missing. We model that bending for each break rather than reporting the offshore direction.
Is Hammonds Reef good for beginners?: Hammonds Reef suits advanced surfers, over cobble reef. That is the wave this bottom makes on an average day, and it moves: the same break is a different proposition on a bigger swell or a different tide, so read the day's forecast rather than the label.
What is the bottom like at Hammonds Reef?: cobble reef. It is the reason this break behaves the way it does: the shape of the seabed decides where the swell focuses, where it trips, and whether it spills or pitches. We model Hammonds Reef on real 10-foot bathymetry instead of treating the seafloor as a slope.

Nearby breaks

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