El Comedor Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ve gotta be straight with you – the next sixteen days at El Comedor are a bit of a write-off for paddle surfing. This is a proper expert-level reef break that’s consistent and exposed, but the wind and swell just aren’t lining up for us. The entire forecast period is plagued by onshore and cross-onshore winds, mostly from the NNE, which is exactly the wrong direction for this spot – it needs a clean offshore from the NNW to really shine. The water temp is sitting about average for this time of year, so nothing unusual there.

We start on Friday, August 14th, and it’s already grim. Morning brings a 5.6ft swell from the NNE with a short, weak period of 7 seconds and moderate wave energy (365). The wind is a direct onshore, so it’s messy and blown-out. Afternoon is slightly smaller at 4.9ft, but still cross-onshore and choppy. This sets the tone for the whole first week. Saturday and Sunday are more of the same – 5.6ft to 3.9ft swells, all from the NNE, with moderate wind and poor conditions. No score, no recommendation.

Monday the 17th and Tuesday the 18th offer a glimmer of hope with lighter winds and a slightly better 9-second period, but it’s still onshore or cross-onshore, and the combined energy dips into the low 200s. The Tuesday morning forecast even calls it “marginal” with a score of 1, but let’s be real – it’s still not worth paddling out. The rest of that week is a steady decline into smaller, weaker swells.

There’s a notable change around Monday, August 24th. The swell direction swings to NNE and the period jumps to a long 11 seconds, which is a groundswell – that’s normally good for a reef like this. The combined energy hits 429, so there’s some push. But the wind is still cross-onshore at 12 mph, killing any chance of clean faces. It’s still rated as poor.

The biggest swells of the window hit Tuesday the 25th and Wednesday the 26th. We’re talking 7.2ft to 8.2ft from the NNE, with energy climbing to 698 and then 921. That’s strong, chunky swell. But the period is short (8–9 seconds) and the wind is cross-onshore. For a reef break, this kind of size with a short period and bad wind just means a washing machine. It’s strictly expert territory at over 8ft, but even experts won’t enjoy this combo. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Thursday the 27th through Saturday the 29th slowly drop back to 6.6ft to 5.6ft, with the wind finally swinging to straight onshore at times, but the damage is done. There’s not a single standout session in the whole sixteen days. The consistent onshore flow and poor swell direction mean we just don’t get that clean, lined-up reef wave this spot needs. Sorry, folks. No good options here.

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