Cintsa West Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it. This is Rusty, and I’m looking at the next sixteen days for Cintsa West. There’s a bit of a slow start, but some real gems are hiding in the second week if you’ve got the patience.

Okay, first up, we’ve got a bit of a rough patch. The swell is building early, but the wind is a messy cross or cross-shore. Friday the 24th kicks off with a solid 8ft S swell, 16-second period, and the combined energy is a hefty 2955, but that SSW wind is putting a cross-chop on it. It’s not the cleanest. Saturday morning the 25th is smaller and still cross. The highlight of the first few days is actually Saturday afternoon: the swell drops to 4ft from the SSW, but the wind goes glassy from the ESE. That’s clean, but it’s small. Sunday morning the 26th is a bit bigger at 5ft, but the NE wind is up.

The real standout for the first week is Tuesday afternoon the 28th. The swell is 5ft from the SSW, with a long 15-second period, and the wind is glassy. The water is sitting at 66°, which is 3° colder than normal for this time of year, so it’s a bit nippy. The combined energy is 1462, a solid moderate punch. This is excellent for experienced surfers. The point should be offering up some clean, lined-up waves.

We’ve got a bit of a lull mid-week, with messy onshore and cross-shore wind. Thursday the 30th and Friday the 31st see a shift to an E swell, but it’s short-period (9-10 seconds) and the NE wind is howling at 19 mph. The combined energy is still in the moderate range, but the quality is poor. This is more of a kite-surfing window than a paddle-surfing one.

Now, hold on to your board. The absolute best of the whole run is Sunday the 2nd of August. The swell is 7ft to 8ft from the E, with an 11-second period, and the wind is dead glassy. The combined energy hits 1534. That’s a strong, powerful groundswell with perfect conditions. This is for experts only, as it’s over 8ft. The point will be handling that long-period energy beautifully, but it will be powerful. Crowds are possible here, so get there early.

After that, Monday the 3rd of August is still solid with a 8ft E swell, but the wind turns cross from the SW. The energy is still high at 2272. It’s still good, but not as perfect as Sunday. The rest of the week falls away, with smaller swells and more cross-shore wind. By Wednesday the 5th of August, it’s back to small, clean 3ft to 4ft waves with glassy conditions, but it’s a big step down.

So, the call is simple: Tuesday the 28th of July is your first solid, clean session. But the absolute pulse of the forecast is Sunday the 2nd of August. That’s the one to circle on the calendar. Everything else is a gamble with the wind or just too small.

Rusty.

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