Caballos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here with the imperial version. Let’s break it down.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – this stretch is a tough one. We’re looking at a long, frustrating gap before anything even starts to look interesting. For a solid week, from Sunday the 23rd of August through Saturday the 30th, it’s pretty much a write-off. The waves are tiny, mostly ankle to knee high with a pitifully short period under 8 seconds. The wind is a constant cross-off from the east at 12 to 15 mph, which keeps the surface clean, but there’s just no power in the water to work with. You’d be wasting your wax.

We finally see a glimmer of hope starting Monday morning, the 31st of August. Caballos is the only spot on the cards, and while it’s a reef setup that needs a specific northerly swell direction, we’re seeing a shift. The swell bumps up a little, and the period starts to stretch out nicely. On the 31st morning, we’ve got 2 ft from the east with a long 14-second period. That’s a proper groundswell pulse. The water is sitting at a warm 85°F, which is about average for the time of year, so no surprises there.

Now, the real standout is the 1st of September. Tuesday morning is looking like the pick of the whole forecast. We’ve got a clean 4 ft of east swell at 11 seconds. That’s a solid, pushy wave. The wind is a steady cross-off from the east at 12 mph, which should keep the face reasonably clean. Caballos is a reef, so a longer-period east swell like this is exactly what it wants – it’ll line up nicely and offer some proper shaped walls. Don’t forget, Caballos is inconsistent, so you have to be patient, and it can get crowded sometimes. But with the swell size sitting around chest to head high, it’s manageable for the advanced crew who know the lineup.

The second week sees the swell drop back down from the 2nd of September onwards. The period shortens up again into the 10-second range. The waves stay in the knee to waist high zone for the rest of the run, with more of that constant cross-off wind. There aren’t any other big standout days after the 1st; it’s a case of getting out on the 1st if you can. A few of those afternoons in early September have marginal tide conditions flagged too, so it’s a tricky window.

If the wind stays strong on some of those smaller days with the swell direction shifting more east-northeast, the beach-break sections could get choppy enough to make it more of a kite session than a paddle session.

Rusty.

Read more