Atalaia (Molhes) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Well, we’ve got a bit of a mixed bag on the cards for Atalaia (Molhes) over the next couple of weeks, but there’s definitely a few windows where it’ll come together.

The pattern kicks off with a bit of a slow start. Tuesday afternoon the 25th is rideable, but it’s nothing to write home about—just 3ft of SE swell with a period of 13 seconds, so the energy is pretty weak (194). It’s glassy, which is a saving grace, but the waves are pretty ordinary. The water’s sitting at 67°, which is about average for the time of year here.

Now, Wednesday morning the 26th is where we get our first proper standout. The swell jumps to 4ft from the SE, but the period stretches out to 15 seconds, which is proper groundswell territory. The combined energy ramps up to 575—moderate but solid. And the wind? Glassy out of the WNW. That means clean, peeling lines, especially with that longer period. This is the pick of the early week for sure. The afternoon takes a step back with a cross-on NE breeze, so hit the morning session.

Thursday the 27th morning is another good call—3ft SE swell at 14 seconds, glassy NNW wind, and energy at 442. Really clean again, but slightly smaller. The rest of Thursday and Friday morning get a bit messy with shorter period ENE swell (8 seconds) and cross-onshore winds. Friday afternoon is a write-off with 15 km/h cross-on NE and poor conditions.

Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th are mostly poor, with lumpy cross-onshore winds and weak energy. The swell sticks around 3–5ft from the ENE but with short periods, so it’s not worth paddling out for unless you’re desperate.

Monday the 31st has a glassy morning with light rain, but the swell is weak at 4ft and 9 seconds (225 energy). It’s surfable, but nothing special. Tuesday the 1st of September morning is similar—4ft from the ENE, glassy, but still no real power.

Here’s the next real highlight: Wednesday morning the 2nd of September. Swell bumps up to 5ft from the SE, period at 10 seconds, and combined energy hits 551. The wind is light SW and cross-off, so it’ll be clean. That’s a good session for intermediates, but at 5ft it might be pushing it for beginners. The afternoon sees the swell jump to 6ft with onshore wind, so that’s for experts only and the quality drops.

Thursday morning the 3rd is another good window—5ft from the ESE, 10 seconds, light NW cross-off wind, energy at 451. Clean and solid. After that, the pattern fades. Friday the 4th morning is still okay with 4ft and clean cross-off wind, but from the 5th onward it gets really weak and crummy, with energy dropping below 200 and mostly onshore winds.

From Saturday the 5th of September right through to the end of the forecast on the 9th, it’s pretty much a dead run. Swell drops to 1–3ft with short periods and choppy cross-onshore winds. The combined energy falls into the double digits (42–250) and most sessions are rated poor. There’s a solid week of nothing worth chasing.

So to wrap it up: if you’re keen, the absolute best windows are Wednesday morning the 26th of August, and Wednesday morning the 2nd of September. Both have clean glassy conditions, proper groundswell from the SE, and enough energy to make it fun. Thursday the 27th morning and Thursday the 3rd September morning are also solid backups. After that, it’s a long, flat, choppy slog.

Stay frothy.
Rusty.

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