As of Tuesday 6:00pm, the best window this week is Wed dawn, 3.5 of 10 - rough, held back by stirred-up water.
A quiet week. Last rang September 7, 2026 - 64 days ago.
Right now
Water, measured
72F
Stearns Wharf, 35.5 km away, this hour · context only - too far to judge the warm light
Turbidity, measured
5.0 NTU · high
particles in the water at Stearns Wharf, 35.5 km away, this hour · the day's median 5.8 · a measurement, not a visibility promise
Buoy, right now
8.2 ft @ 14.0 s
from 295° · 30 min ago
Tide
0.2 ft rising
high 3.6 at 11:09pm
Satellite clarity
clear
Kd490 0.051, 14 days old · a witness, not a forecast
Dry spell
72 h+
the gate wants 72 hours without rain
Plankton
blue
chlorophyll 0.3 mg/m³ by satellite · green water is plankton
Plankton, measured
blue
chlorophyll 0.6 ug/L at Stearns Wharf · green water is plankton
Moon
new · 2%
full in 14 days · new in 28
The water index
Wed dawn - this bell's best window this week, scored on its own water.
The week, scored
Each window is scored 1 to 10 for this water alone; 7 is worth the drive. The bell rings only when every condition aligns and holds across two readings.
Wed dawn3.5
swell 5.5 ft @ 9.8 s from 282° · wind 2.7 kn · tide 4.1 ft ↑ · cloud 0% · first light 6:00am · sun up 6:30am
held back by stirred-up water · Tajiguas Reef
Wed dusk3.1
swell 5.5 ft @ 9.7 s from 281° · wind 5.9 kn · tide 1.0 ft ↓ · cloud 5% · sun down 4:58pm
held back by stirred-up water · Refugio State Beach
Thu dawn3.0
swell 4.9 ft @ 9.7 s from 280° · wind 7.5 kn · tide 3.8 ft ↑ · cloud 100% · first light 6:01am · sun up 6:31am
held back by stirred-up water · Tajiguas Reef
Thu dusk2.7
swell 5.7 ft @ 10.7 s from 284° · wind 9.4 kn · tide 1.7 ft ↓ · cloud 100% · sun down 4:57pm
held back by stirred-up water · Refugio State Beach
Fri dawn1.5
swell 7.6 ft @ 10.5 s from 275° · wind 7.6 kn · tide 3.6 ft ↑ · cloud 47% · first light 6:02am · sun up 6:32am
held back by swell · Tajiguas Reef
Fri dusk1.5
swell 8.0 ft @ 9.9 s from 273° · wind 6.3 kn · tide 2.5 ft ↓ · cloud 99% · sun down 4:56pm
held back by swell · Refugio State Beach
Sat dawn1.0
swell 12.2 ft @ 11.4 s from 281° · wind 3.9 kn · tide 3.9 ft ↑ · cloud 100% · first light 6:02am · sun up 6:32am
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Sat dusk1.0
swell 12.7 ft @ 12.7 s from 283° · wind 7.4 kn · tide 3.1 ft ↓ · cloud 15% · sun down 4:56pm
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Sun dawn1.0
swell 9.3 ft @ 10.3 s from 280° · wind 2.3 kn · tide 3.3 ft ↑ · cloud 28% · first light 6:03am · sun up 6:33am
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Sun dusk1.0
swell 7.4 ft @ 9.5 s from 279° · wind 5.1 kn · tide 3.6 ft ↓ · cloud 11% · sun down 4:55pm
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Mon dawn1.9
swell 8.2 ft @ 12.1 s from 287° · wind 1.2 kn · tide 3.7 ft ↓ · cloud 100% · first light 6:04am · sun up 6:34am
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Mon dusk1.3
swell 10.4 ft @ 12.2 s from 287° · wind 4.8 kn · tide 3.9 ft ↓ · cloud 64% · sun down 4:54pm
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Tue dawn1.3
swell 9.1 ft @ 10.2 s from 287° · wind 3.9 kn · tide 3.9 ft ↓ · cloud 5% · first light 6:05am · sun up 6:35am
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Tue dusk1.2
swell 7.9 ft @ 9.6 s from 287° · wind 7.2 kn · tide 3.9 ft ↑ · cloud 0% · sun down 4:54pm
held back by rain · Tajiguas Reef
Lights, left to right: flat · glass · dry · sun · warm. All five, held across two readings, and the bell rings.
The tide
Three days, from the same predictions the forecast reads. Shaded: the dawn and dusk windows.
Water temperature
The weather model's sea-surface temperature: four days past, three ahead (dotted), today marked. Where a pier or NOAA station measures the water, that reading is the card under Right now.
The water, mapped
Gold: the coves the bell names this week. Filled: placed where USGS place names and OpenStreetMap agree; hollow: one source. Blue: the instruments this bell reads, with their distance. The arrow: the week's best swell, arriving from its direction. Not drawn, because no public source places them: Refugio State Beach, Tajiguas Reef.
The coves
Refugio State Beachnamed this week 25 ft · sand beside the point, palms at your back · eelgrass and reef west of the point; VERIFY take rules
Tajiguas Reefnamed this week 30 ft · pullout beach, short swim · low-relief reef fingers; navigation practice water · best at mid-high tide
The instruments
buoy 46054, tide station 9411340, water 74F now (the bell wants 56F or warmer).
When it rings: the mornings the islands hold the swell offshore. In its casting against years of this water, 31% of mornings reached 7. Rings since casting: 0.
Join this bell
Text BARBARA to 833-858-2355
You get a text the rare morning this water is perfect, and the week's forecast every Wednesday. Text BELL ONLY for the ring alone, FORECAST for the week any time. Msg&data rates may apply. Reply STOP to leave.
The ledger
This bell has not yet rung. When it does, the ring enters here the moment it is made, and the morning after, the buoy, the wind, the rain and the sky testify to whether it held. Every bell's record →