Castelejo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Castelejo over the next couple of weeks.

To be straight with you, it’s a grim stretch. We’ve got a solid 16 days of forecast data, but the surf quality is just not there for most of it. The wind is a constant problem. From Thursday afternoon the 23rd of July all the way through to the end of the month, we’re looking at onshore and cross-onshore winds from the NNW and N, blowing between 9 and 22 mph. That’s a lot of chop and lumpy conditions for a place that’s exposed to the NW swell. The wave heights are small, between 3 ft and 5 ft, but the wind is just ruining any chance of a clean wave. The combined swell energy is weak, hovering between 61 and 304, which tells you there’s just no punch in the water.

The first real glimmer of hope, and probably the only standout window in the whole outlook, is Wednesday morning, the 29th of July. That morning we finally get a break in the wind. It’s a light breeze from the ESE at 6 mph, blowing cross-offshore. The report says “clean” conditions, and the swell is a modest 4 ft from the NW with a period of 7 seconds. The combined energy is 145 (weak to moderate). It’s not going to be perfect, but it’s the cleanest we’ll see. The water is a bit colder than normal for this time of year at 67°F. This is your best bet, but keep expectations in check.

Another fleeting moment comes on the morning of Friday the 31st of July. We get glassy conditions with a light easterly breeze at 3 mph. The swell is small, 3 ft from the NNW, period of 6 seconds, and combined energy of 91 (weak). It’s surfable, but very ordinary.

Then we hit the first week of August. The swell picks up, with waves reaching 7 ft to 8 ft on Sunday the 2nd and Monday the 3rd, with combined energy readings jumping to 800 and 895 (strong to very strong wave energy). But the wind is still onshore or cross-onshore from the NNW at 12 to 22 mph. The report calls it “poor surf conditions” and “choppy” and “lumpy.” For a beach and reef setup like Castelejo, this is going to be a messy, blown-out mess. Honestly, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

For the rest of the second week, the wind stays strong—up to 25 mph from the N and NNW—and the swell drops back down to under 3 ft. There’s nothing to get excited about.

So, the long and short of it: if you’re desperate for a paddle, set your alarm for the morning of Wednesday the 29th of July. That’s your one real window. The rest of the period is a write-off, and the long-range stuff in the first week of August is just messy, powerful, and blown out.

Rusty.

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