El Canal (Rio de Bayamon) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let me level with you about the surf scene at El Canal over the next two weeks.

Honestly, it’s a tough stretch. The forecast shows nothing but "poor surf conditions" across the entire 16-day window, so there’s no standout swell to get excited about. The swell is coming from the ENE and E, but the optimum direction for this spot is from the north, so there’s a real mismatch. What we’ve got is a series of weak, short-period windswells that just aren’t going to get the job done. Expect a lot of close-outs and gutless waves.

The water temperature is sitting right around 84°, with an anomaly of 1°, which is about average for the time of year, so you won’t need a thick wetsuit.

Let’s run through it. Friday the 24th kicks off with a tiny 3 ft swell from the ENE, period a short 7 seconds, and it’s blowing 15 mph from the ENE. That’s a cross-shore wind, creating a nasty chop. Combined energy is weak at 81. It’s a mess. Afternoon cleans up a bit with a cross-off wind, but the wave height barely bumps to 4 ft and the energy is still only moderate at 118 (just barely). Still poor surf.

Saturday the 25th and Sunday the 26th are similar. Swell hangs around 4 ft to 4 ft, period still short at 7-8 seconds. The wind goes cross-off out of the east, which makes the surface clean, but the waves are weak and won’t hold shape. The wave energy is moderate (128-191), but it’s not translating into rideable waves. El Canal is a sheltered river mouth that rarely breaks, and with these conditions, it’s basically flat.

Monday the 27th through Wednesday the 30th shows a slight pulse, with the 30th seeing a peak of 5 ft swell from the ENE. That’s the biggest we’ll see. The period is still only 8 seconds, so it’s a short, crumbly windswell. The energy is at its peak on the 30th (258-274), which is moderate, but the swell direction is still wrong for the spot. It’s still poor surf.

From the 31st of July all the way through to the 8th of August, it’s a slow fade. Swell sizes drop back down to 1 ft to 4 ft, periods are a pathetic 5 to 9 seconds, and the energy falls into the weak range (as low as 10 on the 7th of August). The wind stays mostly cross-off, but with that tiny, weak swell, it’s not going to matter.

At the end of the day, there’s simply nothing worth paddling out for. The whole 16-day stretch is a write-off. The spot is a river mouth that is sheltered, and the swell just isn’t cooperating. Sometimes you get a blank run like this. Don’t bother waxing the board.

Rusty.

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