Castelejo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get straight into the outlook for Castelejo.

Alright, I gotta be straight with you – the first week and a half of this forecast window is a bit of a write-off for quality surfing. There’s a lot of onshore and cross-onshore winds in the pipeline, mostly from the NNW and NW, with moderate to fresh breezes that are going to leave the surface choppy and messy. The swell is generally small, mostly under 3ft, and the period is short, so it’s not going to have any push. The combined energy is weak, often in the double digits, and the wave comment is consistently "poor surf conditions". The water temperature is running about 67°, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year.

We do get a bit of a reprieve starting on the morning of Sunday the 16th of August. The wind swings to a light east breeze, becoming cross-offshore, and the conditions clean up. The swell is still only about 4ft from the NW with a period of 9 seconds, but the wave comment says "surfable waves but very ordinary conditions". The energy is moderate (188). It’s small, but it’s clean.

The real standout, and the best window on offer, comes on Monday the 17th of August. The morning is absolute glass – wind from the NNE at only 3 mph. The swell is 4ft from the NW, but that glassy water is going to make it feel a lot better. The combined energy is moderate (159). The afternoon is also glassy, with a 4ft swell from the NNW pushing energy to 194. For a beach and reef setup, that glassy wind is a major positive. This is the best session of the week.

Tuesday the 18th of August morning also offers glassy conditions with a 4ft NW swell, so that’s a solid follow-up session. Things get choppy again by Tuesday afternoon.

Looking further ahead, the energy starts to build. The best surf of the entire forecast period is shaping up for Thursday the 20th of August afternoon and Friday the 21st of August. On Thursday afternoon, the wind is a light S breeze at 9 mph, making it cross-offshore and clean. The swell bumps up to 4ft from the NNW with a period of 8 seconds, and the combined energy jumps to a strong 224. The wave comment says "expect good surf conditions".

Then Friday the 21st of August is the pick of the bunch. The morning has a clean offshore wind from the SE at 9 mph, with a solid 5ft swell from the NNW at a 9-second period. The energy is very strong at 460. The afternoon gets even better – some clouds, a 9 mph SSE wind, and the same 5ft swell from the NNW, but the period stretches to 10 seconds, pushing the energy to a massive 628. The wave comment is "expect very good surf conditions". This is a long-range call, so it’s a promising one, but it’s a bit less certain. If it comes together, it’s the best wave of the run.

After that, the swell backs off quickly into the 22nd and 23rd of August, with winds turning more cross-shore and the energy dropping back to weak levels.

So, to sum it up: the first week and a half is a tough slog. Your best bets are the glassy mornings of Monday the 17th and Tuesday the 18th of August for small but clean waves, and the real standout is the Friday the 21st of August, which has the potential for some very good, clean surf with a much stronger swell.

Rusty.

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