Santa Clara Rivermouth
Surf spot · United States
Is it worth the trip?
32Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 4 ft swell at 10 s
Tue 3 · 21 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft14 scrumbling
- Energy
- 253kJ
- Wind
- SW 1 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Wed 4 · 36 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 296kJ
- Wind
- WNW 3 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Thu 5 · 31 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 179kJ
- Wind
- NE 4 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Fri 6 · 18 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 256kJ
- Wind
- WNW 6 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Sat 7 · 37 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 348kJ
- Wind
- NNE 2 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Sun 8 · 26 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 200kJ
- Wind
- N 1 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Mon 9 · 34 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 304kJ
- Wind
- SW 3 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Tue 321, too small
- Wed 436, too small
- Thu 531, too small
- Fri 618, too small
- Sat 737, too small
- Sun 826, too small
- Mon 934, too small
- Tue 1039, too small
- Wed 1137, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–11 ftof swell
- Water 17 °C3/2 wetsuit
- Best in Jan4 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 21, too small | 3 ft14 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 253kJ | wind from the south-west, 1 knot | 21°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 36, too small | 4 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 296kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots | 21°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 31, too small | 4 ft8 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 179kJ | offshorewind from the north-east, 4 knots, offshore | 23°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 18, too small | 4 ft10 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 256kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 6 knots | 26°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 37, too small | 4 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 348kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-east, 2 knots, offshore | 28°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 26, too small | 3 ft10 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 200kJ | wind from the north, 1 knot | 27°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 34, too small | 4 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 304kJ | wind from the south-west, 3 knots | 25°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 39, too small | 4 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 331kJ | offshorewind from the east-north-east, 3 knots, offshore | 25°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 37, too small | 4 ft10 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 275kJ | offshorewind from the east-north-east, 2 knots, offshore | 24°C |
Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More
Tide
- Tue 3 NovHigh 05:22 +0.6 mLow 11:12 −0.3 mHigh 16:53 +0.5 mLow 23:23 −0.8 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 05:58 +0.7 mLow 12:10 −0.5 mHigh 18:01 +0.5 m
- Thu 5 NovLow 00:06 −0.7 mHigh 06:31 +0.8 mLow 13:00 −0.7 mHigh 19:00 +0.5 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
best in Jan
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan4of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar2of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug0of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov3of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
- Dec3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot and its town
Santa Clara Rivermouth on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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More surf near here
5 places
- Power plant 3.8 km away
- Oxnard Shores 4.9 km away
- Ventura Point 6 km away
- Hollywood Beach 8 km away
- Ventura Overhead 8.5 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Santa Clara Rivermouth
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (235°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (55°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–11 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 650 m out (1 in 66). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 14°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually January, with about 4 good days in 7; in August, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Ventura, 6 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.
Water about 17°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,200–US$2,170 each
about US$1,200–US$2,170 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to SBA, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag | about US$255–US$530 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$154–US$255 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$302–US$503 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$342–US$637 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$148–US$242 |
| Total | about US$1,200–US$2,170 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: 3 towns
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 15 min by car · 32 places to stay
about US$114/nightcountry average
About Ventura its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Oxnard on Booking.com
about 15 min by car · 5 places to stay
- Beds in Port Hueneme on Booking.com
about 20 min by car · 7 places to stay
About US$114 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 7h 40m
About 7h 40m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → SBA, direct, then 1h 15m by road
Flights ORD → SBA on your dates · AviasalesAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.