Aracaju Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’m gonna be straight with you – this 16-day window for Aracaju is a tough one. The swell is on the small side and the wind is almost never on our side, so the surf quality is poor across the board. There’s nothing here that I’d call a proper standout, but we’ll walk through what’s on offer.

The forecast kicks off with some small, clean-ish conditions on Wednesday the 26th of August. The swell is coming from the south at 2ft to 2ft with a long period of 13-15 seconds, which is a nice groundswell, but it’s weak, with combined wave energy around 172-244 (moderate). The water temp is a balmy 80°, which is about average for this time of year – no surprises there. The problem is the wind. It’s onshore from the east and southeast, so the surface is going to be bumpy. Thursday the 27th sees a little more size – 2ft to 3ft – and the swell direction shifts to the SSE. The energy builds to 368-594 (moderate), but the wind gets stronger, especially on Thursday afternoon with a 16 mph cross-onshore breeze that’ll chop things up. Friday the 28th is similar, with 3ft to 4ft swell from the south at 15 seconds, and energy hitting 723-727 (moderate to strong), but again, the wind is onshore or cross-onshore, making it messy. Not worth paddling out.

Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th drop off a bit – swell around 2ft to 4ft, but the period tanks to 7-8 seconds on Sunday, which is short-period windswell. The wind is still onshore from the east, so it’s choppy and weak. The energy drops to 183-337 (moderate). Monday the 31st of August is more of the same: 4ft swell from the ESE at 8 seconds, with rain showers and a 12 mph cross-onshore wind. The surf is poor.

The first week of September doesn’t bring any relief. Tuesday the 1st has a bump to 5ft from the east at 9 seconds, but the wind is a fresh 19 mph cross-onshore, making it lumpy and dangerous for beginners. That’s too big and windy for a learner, and the short period means it’s just a messy closeout. The rest of the first week stays small – 2ft to 4ft – with short periods (8-9 seconds) and persistent onshore or cross-onshore winds. The energy is weak to moderate (128-338). There’s a small window of cleaner conditions on the 4th and 5th of September with the wind going onshore rather than cross-onshore, but it’s still small and weak.

The second week is a rinse and repeat. From the 6th to the 10th of September, the swell is tiny – 2ft to 3ft – with periods mostly 7-10 seconds. The wind stays onshore or cross-onshore from the east and northeast, with speeds of 12-19 mph. The energy is weak (90-185), and the surf is poor. The 10th of September sees a slightly longer period of 13 seconds from the southeast, but the wind is a fresh 19 mph cross-onshore, so it’s a lumpy mess.

In short, there’s no good surf on offer for the entire 16-day stretch. The wind is against us, the swell is small with short periods, and the quality is consistently poor. For a spot like Aracaju (Brazil), this kind of blank run is more normal than you’d hope – it’s a tough time of year. If you’re a kite surfer, the combination of moderate swell and strong onshore wind might be more interesting, but for paddle surfing, it’s a no-go.

Rusty

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