El Camotal Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here with a look at what's on the cards for El Camotal. It’s gonna be a long wait for a wave.

So, the outlook for the next 16 days is, to be honest, pretty flat and frustrating. There’s a massive gap at the start with nothing worth paddling out for. We’re looking at a solid 4 days of poor to non-existent surf from now up to and including Tuesday the 12th. The swell energy is so weak it barely registers, with combined energy readings down in the low triple digits and even single digits, and the wind is constantly a cross-onshore mess.

The first real chance to get wet doesn't appear until Thursday morning the 13th of August. We’re looking at some small, long-period SW groundswell starting to trickle in, about 3ft from the SW with a 19-second period. The combined energy finally climbs to a reasonable (586), but it’s still a “marginal” call. The wind is light and cross-onshore, so it won't be clean perfection, but there might be a sneaky set or two for the beginner crew. It’s a patient person’s game.

The standout in the whole window is shaping up for Friday morning the 14th of August. That’s the one to circle on the calendar. The swell bumps up to 5ft from the SW, with a 16-second period. The combined energy reading jumps to 1210, showing a real pulse of moderate energy. It’s going to be a genuine winter swell. The wind remains a light cross-onshore breeze, which is about as good as we are likely to get around here. This is still marginal surf with questionable tide, but it’s the biggest and most powerful it’s going to get.

If you’re a beginner, keep in mind that 5ft swell is getting up there, maybe a bit too much on the sets. For the more experienced crew, Friday morning is the time to find a peak that works with that SW direction.

After that peak, it’s a slow slide back into junk. The wind stays cross-onshore and picks up through the weekend and into the next week, turning the ocean into a choppy mess with combined energy dropping steadily. We scrape by with some tiny, marginal waves the following Wednesday the 20th and Saturday the 23rd, but honestly, it's all poor conditions.

It’s a tough run. If Friday doesn’t deliver, there isn’t much else on offer. The water temp is about average for this time of year.

Rusty.

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