Cabarete Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Cabarete (Dominican Republic) is lookin’ at a pretty grim stretch, to be honest. The next couple of weeks are wall-to-wall poor surf marks, with barely a wave worth paddling out for. The wind is locked in from the east, mostly cross-onshore, which is chopping up an already weak, short-period mess. We’ve got a long stretch of barely-there swell, with a few pulses of longer-period energy from the NE that might clean up the face a touch, but the winds just keep messin’ with it.

Looking at the first week, it’s a write-off. From the 16th to the 25th, the swell’s mostly in the 1ft to 4ft range, but it’s all short-period, 4 to 8 seconds, which means it’s gutless and jumbled. The combined energy is mostly in the low to mid-double digits, weak overall, with a couple of days getting up into the 120s to 190s (moderate energy) but those are paired with fresh onshores, making it even messier. On the 18th, the energy bumps to 193, but that’s with 19 mph east winds. That’s a chop-fest, not a surfable day. Don’t get too excited about the 23rd either—there’s a jump in period to 16 seconds, but the swell’s only 1ft. That’s all the energy with no push. Real tease.

There’s a small window on the 26th morning where the wind flips to a light, offshore NE and the period bumps to 14 seconds, but the wave height is still just 1ft. Too small to do anything on, and that combo of tiny and long-period makes it mushy, not hollow. The on-and-off-again cross-onshores just chop up the surface anyway.

Into the next week, the 1st of October morning actually looks like the most promising session of the whole run—which says more about the run than the surf. There’s a 1ft, 12-second easterly swell, with light onshores at 6 mph. Combine that with a moderate 68 energy reading, and the water’s glassy. It’s still small, but the longer period and clean conditions might just give a couple of soft, fun waves on the inside at Cabarete. The break’s exposed and reef-based, but it’s inconsistent at this size—rarely worth the paddle.

Then it’s back to the drudge through the 2nd and 3rd. Look, if you’re a beginner, stay on the beach. Anything over 5ft is too much for you—and even then, the winds are just howling onshore. If the waves ever get over 8ft, which they don’t here, it’s only for experts. But honestly, the setup here is better for a kite or windsurf session than a paddle. The constant cross-onshores and lumpy faces are just not surfable.

The good news? It’s only a few days of small, weak junk. Forecasts never stay poor for long in the tropics. But for now, I’d say leave your board in the car and go find a beach bar. This stretch is as poor as it gets for surf. Check back in a week.

Rusty

Read more