El Comedor Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, it’s Rusty. I’ve been staring at the charts for El Comedor for the next 16 days, and I gotta say, it’s a tough pill to swallow. This is a proper expert-only reef that needs everything to line up, and we’re just not getting it. The wind is stuck onshore or cross-onshore for the whole run, and the swell direction keeps coming from the north or north-northeast, when this spot really wants a solid northwest. The water’s sitting around 75°F, and with a temperature anomaly of plus 2°F, it’s a touch warmer than usual for mid-August, but that’s about the only good news.

Starting Sunday the 16th, we’ve got some clouds and a light NNE breeze blowing straight onto the face. Swell is 4ft from the NNE with a weak 7-second period, and the combined energy is 208 (moderate). The wave comment says it all: poor surf conditions. That’s the whole first week right there. Monday the 17th is 4ft from the north with the wind onshore at 12 mph, period at 8 seconds, and energy at 236 (moderate). Still rubbish. Tuesday the 18th is the same: 4ft north swell, onshore wind, period at 9 seconds, energy at 198 (weak). Every day is a repeat – no clean windows, no decent direction.

We roll into the weekend of the 22nd and it’s more of the same: 4ft to 4ft swells, onshore north-northeast winds at 12 mph, periods of 7 seconds, energy around 197 to 203 (moderate). The next week doesn’t change. By Monday the 24th, the wind is cross-onshore from the northeast at 9-12 mph, swell drops to 3ft-3ft, period stretches to 9-10 seconds, but the quality’s still poor. Energy ticks up to 209-226 (moderate), but it’s not making a difference.

The only real pulse comes at the very end. On Thursday the 27th, we see a jump to 6ft from the NNE, but with a short 7-second period and cross-onshore wind. The energy climbs to 309 (strong), which is the highest of the run, but the direction is off and the wind is messy. Friday the 28th has 6ft from the north, period at 7-8 seconds, energy up to 322-357 (strong), but still cross-onshore. By Saturday the 29th, it’s dropping back to 5ft, and the wind is still a problem.

There’s no standout here. The only time it’s even worth a mention is from the 27th to the 31st, when the swell peaks at 6ft with strong energy (up to 384 on the 31st), but the period is short and the wind is relentlessly messy. That’s a lot of water, but it’s going to be lumpy and chopped up – more of a fight than fun. This spot is expert-only, and with these conditions, you’d be better off doing something else. There are big gaps of days with no recommendations – basically the whole 16 days is a blank.

So, no good options. It happens here – El Comedor can be fickle. But a decent northwest groundswell with clean offshore winds could flip it overnight. Keep watching.

Rusty.

Read more