King Tides About to Slam Santa Barbara Coast

Tides up to 7.23 Feet High Expected Thursday Through Saturday Morning

High King Tides slammed Santa Barbara’s coastline on November 6 this year, including at Butterfly Beach pictured here. Photos were taken at high tide around 10am. | Credit: Heal the Ocean

Water pounded Santa Barbara’s coastline on November 6 for the first king tides of the year — flooding beaches and parking lots and jumping the walls of usually dry lookouts at places like Butterfly Beach and Campus Point.

This weekend marks round two of these extraordinarily high tides, which occur when the sun, moon, and Earth align, pulling the surf to extreme highs and lows. They are typically at least one foot above the average high tide, according to the California Coastal Commission.

High King Tides slammed Santa Barbara’s coastline on November 6 this year, including at Goleta Beach pictured here. Photos were taken at high tide around 10am. Credit: Heal the Ocean

Santa Barbara is expected to see tides up to 7.23 feet high each morning from Thursday, December 4, through Saturday, December 7. The royally high tides will inundate beaches from Goleta to Ventura and have the potential to damage property and other infrastructure.

It’s a glimpse of the future, says the commission and Santa Barbara environmental groups. Scientists project ocean levels in California will rise as much as 1.2 feet by 2050 and up to 6.6 feet by the end of the century due to the planet’s warming climate.

Exacerbated by the burning of fossil fuels, greenhouse gas pollution acts like an atmospheric “blanket” that traps heat that would otherwise escape, raising Earth’s temperature, melting glaciers and ice sheets, and causing water to expand, which will raise sea levels, scientists say.

While king tides themselves are not caused by climate change, “high king tides provide us with a preview of future sea level rise, revealing where coastal areas and infrastructure are most vulnerable to current and future flooding,” explained Karina Johnston, executive director of Heal the Ocean. “These tide events help us prioritize locations to implement science-based adaptation strategies, which will strengthen the resilience of our coastal communities.”

The California Coastal Commission is asking the public to snap pictures of the tides this year to add to its existing photo gallery from previous seasons.

Photographing the tides “brings attention to the impact of climate change and helps prepare for the future,” the commission said in a statement. The public is advised to prioritize their safety, stay clear of waves, and give space to shore birds and other animals when taking the photos.

“The images are used by climate researchers, as well as local and state officials, to validate sea level rise models and assess local vulnerabilities to erosion and flooding,” the commission said. “The project is one of many similar community science efforts across the world to create a visual record of our changing coastlines.”

Details available on the commission’s website include local times for king tides, community events, and registration for a December 2 webinar about the program.

In case you miss December’s tides, people will have another chance to glimpse the final king tides of the season on January 2 and 3, 2026.