Nautical Nick logo
NauticalNickVisibility Report

Windansea Beach

La Jolla · San Diego County · California

Today’s conditions · not a forecast

Visibility Breakdown

Updated through the day · times PT
Last reading 7:01 AM

Visibility by position

Post Break
headline zone
21ft
reviewed reading
Open Water
31ft
reviewed reading

Solid = diver report · outlined = our reading

Cross-section from the sand out to open water, split into 2 visibility zones: Post Break (0-200 ft from shore), Open Water (200+ ft from shore).
Shore
Post Break
0-200 ft from shore
Open Water
200+ ft from shore

Post Break: The range past where any waves are forming, where the water starts to have a significant increase in visibility. There might be some sediment here, but swell energy is diffused and the water is calmer.

Open Water: This zone is far out enough from the shore that the water is at its clearest. It’s deep enough that sediment is not disturbed by the wave energy at the surface. Haze can sit near the surface, so the water is usually clearer the deeper you go.

Through the day

Today's visibility readings at this spot, shown at the hour each one was taken.

Every bar is a reading for the Post Break zone.

21 ✓
7a
9a
soon
10a
soon
11a
soon
1p
soon
3p
soon
5p
soon

Did you dive today?Please share the visibility to make our algorithm more accurate.

Report visibility
Entry type
Shore
Parking
Small lot + street
Spearfishing
Legal
Stingray risk
Low
Water quality
A+ · graded Aug 21
Green flag: water open County: Open · Oct 27
A 1.1 mi away
Difficulty
Advanced
Popular activities
Surf · Spearfishing
Today's forecast

Why it reads 19–23 ft

Updated 7:01 AM PT today · October 27, 2026
Moderate phytoplankton
Neutral
0.6 µg/L (water sample)
Moderate impact
Moderate swell
Neutral
2.5 ft
Minor swell
Short-period chop
Hurts vis
4.0 s
Moderate chop
Light wind
Helps vis
4 kt
Minor wind
Live reading cap (carried)
Hurts vis
carried forward, 14 h ago
Minor impact

Medium confidence

Ocean Oracle

7-Day Forecast

Days 2 to 7 are Pro

Today is the live headline above. Tomorrow onward is the algorithm's forecast from predicted swell, wind, and rain, updated each morning and at 6 PM Pacific.

Today · Tue
Oct 27
19–23ft
Perfect
Open Water 31 ft
Swell 2 ft at 4 s, wind 2 kt at 10 AM. No rain forecast.
Wed
Oct 28
14
Good
Open Water 21 ft
Thu
Oct 29
9
Fair
Open Water 14 ft
Fri
Oct 30
16
Excellent
Open Water 24 ft
Sat
Oct 31
19
Excellent
Open Water 27 ft
Sun
Nov 1
11
Good
Open Water 17 ft
Mon
Nov 2
13
Good
Open Water 20 ft
Unlock days 2 to 7
7-day forecasts come with Ocean Oracle Pro · $5/mo
Get Ocean Oracle →
Getting there

Map and parking

32.8312° N · 117.2822° W
Map of Windansea Beach showing Neptune Place, Bonair Street, and the SMR boundary
Address
6800 Neptune Pl
La Jolla, CA 92037
Parking
Small lot + street

A small lot on Neptune Place between Nautilus and Bonair Streets. Residential street parking on Neptune Place and the side streets fills early on summer weekends.

See the offshore water on Pelagiscape →Clarity, temperature breaks and kelp off this beach.
Field notes

About Windansea Beach

Bottom
Sandstone shelves and submerged rocks
Surf shack
Built 1947, rebuilt after a 2015 swell
Known for
A powerful reef break
Parking
16-space lot on Neptune Pl, full before 9 AM summer weekends
Protection
No MPA here; a reserve starts at the Palomar Ave stairs

Windansea Beach is a sandstone reef beach in La Jolla, sitting between Marine Street Beach to the north and Palomar Avenue to the south. A thatched-roof surf shack stands on the bluff at the foot of Bonair Street, first built in 1947 and rebuilt by local residents after a winter swell destroyed it in 2015. Neptune Place runs along the bluff above the beach. At the south end, the beach ends at the Palomar Avenue stair-line, which marks the northern boundary of the South La Jolla State Marine Reserve. Windansea Beach itself sits on the legal side of that line, with the reserve and its take prohibitions covering only the water south of the stairs.

From the Nautilids who hunt it

Spot strategies

Ocean Oracle Pro
Unlock spot strategies
How other Nautilids actually hunt Windansea Beach: the biome they worked, the gear, the tide and time of day, and what they were after.
Get Ocean Oracle →
Ocean Oracle Pro logoOcean Oracle Pro

Gain the Power
of the Oracle.

Ocean Oracle sees the future. Get 7-day visibility forecasts for every beach, alerts when a prime day is coming, and a dive log that remembers every dive.

Free shows you what the ocean looks like today. Ocean Oracle shows you the week ahead, watches your beaches for you, and remembers every dive.

Pelagiscape Offshore Map

One full-screen map of the water off all of California: satellite water clarity and temperature, temperature breaks, seafloor shading, depth lines, surface kelp, Marine Protected Areas, currents, wind, and swell. Save your spots as pins and get an email when a temperature break comes near them.

7-Day Forecasts

Visibility predictions for the entire week ahead at any beach. Plan dives, schedule charters, and book trips without guessing.

Prime-Day Alerts

When a beach on your watchlist is running good water, or the week ahead shows a good day coming, Ocean Oracle emails you. A prime window never slips past.

Dive Log

Every entry freezes that day's report: visibility, tide, swell, wind. Log catches, stamp Personal Bests, level up your guns, and light up your species life list.

Front-Page Oracle

The Coastal Bulletin greets members with the clearest water on the coast today and their own watchlist, before a single click.

Watchlists

Track your favorite beaches in one place. Forecasts and alerts for everywhere you dive.

Spot Strategies

A members-only board on every beach where taking fish is legal: how other members hunt the spot, with the gear, tide, season, and target species. Post your own and earn XP.

Get Ocean Oracle — $5/mo or $50/yr

See the future. Dive on the right days.