El Faro Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for El Faro over the next couple of weeks. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, with the best conditions set to be in the mornings, especially early on. The water’s sitting at 88°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year – nice for a long session.

The swell hangs around the 3 to 4 ft range for the first week, coming in from the SW with a long period around 14 seconds, so expect proper groundswell lines with some wait between sets. It’s punchy, but not too heavy for most intermediates. The combined energy is moderate, often reading in the 700s (735) and 600s, so there’s enough push to get into.

Sunday morning on the 16th is a bit average – cross-shore wind and a dodgy tide make it marginal. Give it a miss. The real window opens Monday morning, the 17th. We get a clean 4 ft SW swell with offshore wind from the North. The period is 14 seconds, so there’s real shape on offer. The combined energy is 685, which is decent. This is a proper session for an intermediate – get on it before the wind swings and ruins the afternoon.

Tuesday the 18th is another standout morning. Glassy conditions with a 4 ft SSW swell, period holding at 14 seconds, and energy at 646. That’s the kind of clean you dream about. Point break and river mouth vibes will handle that long period really well.

Wednesday the 19th and Thursday the 20th follow the same script: clean mornings with offshore or cross-offshore wind, but the swell does drop a touch, down to 4 ft and then 3 ft by Thursday. Still fun, but the Monday and Tuesday mornings are the cream of the first week.

There’s a bit of a quiet patch from the 21st through the 24th – swell dips, period drops, and wind turns on a lot of afternoons. Still, Saturday the 22nd and Sunday the 23rd keep that morning glass going, with the 23rd offering a very long 18-second period groundswell at 2 ft and a massive energy reading of 848. That’s a lot of push for a small wave – points and reefs will be weirdly good, but the beach break might be a bit too straight.

The second week has a promising session on Saturday the 29th of August. The swell picks up to 5 ft from the SSW, period at 16 seconds, and the combined energy jumps to 1084 – that’s a strong push. Early morning looks clean with cross-offshore wind. This one is for experienced surfers; at 5 ft with that period, it’ll have some grunt.

Overall, your best bets are the Monday (17th) and Tuesday (18th) of August for clean, solid conditions, and then keep an eye on the Saturday the 29th for a bigger, more powerful session. The afternoons are mostly a write-off, so plan for dawn patrols.

Rusty

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