Copacabana Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, let's get into it. We've got a 16-day window for Copacabana, and it's a bit of a mixed bag to be honest. The first few days are a write-off, but there are some real gems hiding in the back half of the forecast if you're patient.

The pattern starts off frustrating. Friday the 4th and Saturday morning the 5th are poor, with small, choppy surf. Then Saturday afternoon the 5th sees a decent jump in size—5 ft from the NW—but that 25 km/h ENE wind is going to make it a messy, blown-out affair. Not worth the paddle. Sunday the 6th and Monday the 7th are a letdown, with onshore winds and small, weak energy. The wait is real.

Now, the first real standout is Tuesday the 8th morning. The water is sitting at a warm 71°, which is about 2° warmer than average for this time of year, so it's a touch on the balmy side. The swell is only 4 ft from the NW, but the wind is a dead calm glass-off. You'll get clean, glassy conditions with combined energy of 269—that's a moderate amount of grunt for the size. The period is 11 seconds, which is a nice long-period groundswell that will reel down the beach nicely. It's not going to be huge, but it'll be clean and fun for the intermediate crew.

We then have a bit of a lull, with Wednesday the 9th morning offering a small window of clean 3 ft surf, but nothing to write home about. The real second standout lands on Saturday the 13th morning. The swell jumps to 5 ft from the NW, with a moderate combined energy of 515, and those cross-offshore winds from the east will keep the faces clean. This is your best bet for the second week, with a solid, rideable size.

Looking further out, Wednesday the 16th morning is another strong candidate. We're looking at 5 ft from the NW with a combined energy of 554—that's a solid amount of juice. The wind is a light breeze from the east, keeping it clean. The period is 10 seconds, so it's a standard swell, but at that size with clean conditions, it's going to be a fun one for the strong intermediates and above. Keep in mind though, anything over 5 ft starts to push it for beginners.

The rest of the week drops off into small, clean, but unremarkable surf. Thursday the 17th morning and Friday the 18th morning are glassy but tiny, with 3 ft and 2 ft respectively. The energy is weak, in the 100-150 range, so it's just lazy little rollers.

Alright, bottom line: if you want a surf, target Tuesday the 8th morning for the glassy, clean conditions, and Saturday the 13th morning for the best size and quality combo. The crowds at Copacabana are "sometimes" an issue, so get out early on those days.

Rusty.

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