El Camotal Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about El Camotal. It’s a beginner-friendly spot, exposed and consistent, but the 16-day window ahead is a bit of a mixed bag.

Right now, we’re looking at a pretty flat and windy start. The coming days are dominated by cross-onshore winds and tiny, weak swell. From Friday the 17th right through to Monday the 21st, the surf is mostly poor—small wind ripples and choppy conditions with swell heights barely cracking 2ft and combined energy values in the teens to low hundreds (34–616). Nothing to get excited about. There’s a brief moment on Sunday morning the 19th where a light offshore wind (5 km/h from the SW) meets a 4ft, 11-second swell from the SW, giving moderate energy (273). That’s the first real glimpse of hope, but the conditions are described as “marginal,” so it’s a gamble.

The pattern shifts a little after that. By Wednesday the 23rd, we see a very long-period swell arriving—24 seconds from the SW—with combined energy hitting 672. That’s a groundswell, and with a period that long, it’ll be better suited to a point or reef, but El Camotal is an exposed beach setup. The wind is still cross-onshore, and the surf quality is marginal. Not ideal.

The standout period comes around Saturday the 25th and Sunday the 26th. Swell holds around 3ft to 4ft from the SW, with periods of 18–22 seconds. Combined energy jumps into the strong range (575–1193). The wind on Saturday morning is light offshore (10 km/h from the SW), which is a major positive—clean lines are likely. Saturday afternoon and Sunday are cross-onshore again, but the light breeze keeps the chop manageable. The water temp is about average for the time of year, nothing unusual.

After that, the swell continues through the start of the following week, but the wind turns more southerly and picks up, making things choppy again. By Tuesday the 28th, it’s moderate cross-onshore and the surf quality drops back to poor. The last few days of July and into August 1st show a slow fade, with energy dropping to the low hundreds and a final 4ft, 18-second swell on August 1st morning, but with cross-onshore wind.

The best of the window? Saturday morning July 25th. That light offshore wind, a 3ft, 18-second SW groundswell, and strong energy (575) should give you the cleanest, most lined-up waves of the whole run. It’s a short window, but if you can time it, that’s the one. Expect crowds? It says “sometimes,” so you might get a few locals out, but it’s not a circus.

Overall, we’ve got a long, flat, and windy start, then a brief but promising bump around the 25th–26th, then a slow fade. It’s not a classic run, but that Saturday morning is worth paddling out for.

Rusty.

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