Located in Santa Barbara County, California, El Capitan State Beach is an excellent right hang point break that serves up long roping walls and barrels on the very rare days that it actually comes to life. The waves here are challenging to surf and break for up to 300 meters over a rock and sand bottom. Don’t sit too deep, the boulders are not forgiving.
What are the best surf conditions for El Capitan State Beach?
Gets good between chest high and double overhead. We recommend riding a longboard here if smaller and a shortboard then step up as the size picks up. This break is suitable for intermediate and advanced-level surfers. The surf here hardly ever breaks (2/10) and will be uncrowded at the start of the day then crowded as word gets out (7/10). The best winds are from the North. The best swells are from the West. Works on a low to mid tide.
We recommend wearing a 3/2 in the summer when water temperatures rise to 17 degrees. In the winter a 4/3 is best when water temperatures drop to 13 degrees. See the temperature chart below for more data on this.
