El Gringo Surf Break

Lat Long: 18.48° S 70.33° W

El Gringo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 1 am 08 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's El Gringo sea temperature is
18.3° C
1.4° 

El Gringo surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


El Gringo surf forecast from 8 Aug 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Sunday 9 Aug, 5PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 15s period, SSW swell with glassy winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Tuesday 11 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 8ft (2.4m), 15s period, SSW swell with 2,613 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 8 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 9s period with SSW swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for El Gringo this week:

The surf forecast for El Gringo over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 08) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.3m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 0.8m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at El Gringo in the next 16 days are 2.4m 15s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 11) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives.

Wave TypeTime (-04) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 8PM (Sat 8th Aug)4.5ft (1.3m) 9s
Best Surf 5PM (Sun 9th Aug)4.5ft (1.4m) 15s
Most Powerful 2AM (Tue 11th Aug)8ft (2.4m) 15s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for El Gringo over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright, let’s get into it. The forecast is looking at a solid run of swell for El Gringo, but it’s not all going to be perfect. There’s a bit of a wait for the best conditions, but when it lines up, it’s going to be good.

The first few days are a bit of a tease. Saturday the 8th has some swell, around 5ft, but the conditions are questionable and the energy is moderate at best (769). It’s not worth getting too excited about just yet. The water is sitting at 65°F, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so that’s a small bonus.

Sunday the 9th is where things start to get interesting. The swell drops a touch to 4ft in the morning but the period jumps to 15 seconds, and it’s glassy. That’s clean, lined-up surf. The energy is picking up too (914). The afternoon is even better, with the swell pushing back up to 5ft from the SSW, still glassy, and the energy jumps to 1194. That’s the first real standout of the run.

Monday the 10th is the big one. The swell builds to 8ft with a 13-second period, and it’s still glassy in the morning. The energy is strong, coming in at 2342. This is proper, powerful surf. It’s right on the edge of being too big for anyone but experienced surfers, so if you’re not confident, give it a miss. The afternoon gets a bit messier with an onshore breeze, so the morning is the window.

Tuesday the 11th has some decent size, 7ft in the morning, but the wind is on it, making it less appealing. The afternoon cleans up nicely though, with the wind going glassy and the swell dropping to a still-chunky 6ft. That’s a good session.

Wednesday the 12th is a bit of a letdown. The wind is onshore and the swell is dropping, with the energy fading to 830. It’s not looking great.

Thursday the 13th has a long-period swell, 19 seconds, but it’s small, only 3ft in the morning. The energy is moderate (736). It’s a sign of things to come, but not quite there yet. The afternoon builds to 4ft with an 18-second period and the energy jumps to 1211. It’s still a bit on the small side.

Friday the 14th is another good one. The morning is glassy with 4ft of SW swell at 16 seconds. It’ll be clean and lined up. Not huge, but quality.

Saturday the 15th has a small, glassy morning with 4ft swell. It’s a fun, clean option, but not a standout.

Then there’s a bit of a lull. Sunday the 16th brings the swell back up, but the wind is onshore, making it messy. Monday the 17th is the next real standout. The morning is glassy with 7ft of swell at 14 seconds. The energy is strong (1628). This is another day for the experienced crew.

The rest of the second week is a mixed bag. Tuesday the 18th has size (7ft) but cross-onshore winds. Wednesday the 19th is smaller and the energy is fading. The last few days, from the 20th to the 23rd, have waves in the 4ft to 5ft range, but the winds are mostly cross-onshore or onshore, and the energy is weak. It’s not looking like much of a surf.

So, the best bets are the glassy mornings on Sunday the 9th, Monday the 10th, and Monday the 17th. If you can only get out once, make it Monday the 10th for the biggest, most powerful swell, or Sunday the 9th for the cleanest, most classic conditions. The long-period swells we see in the middle of the period should hold up well at this reef break. It’s a fairly consistent spot, so when it’s good, it’s good.

Rusty

Short Range Forecast

Mostly dry. Very mild (max 19°C on Mon afternoon, min 14°C on Sat morning). Wind will be generally light.

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Mostly dry. Warm (max 24°C on Wed morning, min 17°C on Tue morning). Wind will be generally light.

Saturday
8
Sunday
9
Monday
10
Tuesday
11
Wednesday
12
Thursday
13
Friday
14
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
2
2
3
3
4
4
4
3
4
3
4
4
1
2
3
2
3
3
3
2
3
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1.4
SW
13
1.4
SW
13
1.3
SSW
9
1.1
SW
15
1.4
SSW
15
1.9
SSW
14
2.3
SSW
13
2.2
SSW
13
2.4
SSW
15
2.1
SSW
14
1.8
SSW
13
1.7
SSW
12
1.7
SSW
12
1.7
SSW
12
1.6
SSW
12
0.8
SW
19
1.1
SW
18
1
SW
17
1.3
SW
16
1.1
SW
15
1.1
SW
15
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
689
658
244
516
829
1402
1905
1643
2613
1724
1134
787
830
774
646
427
686
547
803
597
472
Wind (km/h)
5
SW
10
WSW
0
SSW
5
SW
5
SW
5
S
5
WSW
10
SSW
5
ESE
10
SW
5
WNW
0
ESE
15
SSW
10
SW
0
S
10
SW
5
WSW
0
NE
5
W
10
SW
5
NNE
Wind State
on
on
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
on
glassy
on
glassy
glassy
on
on
glassy
on
on
glassy
glassy
on
glassy
High Tide
4:49PM0.65m
5:53AM1.19m
6:10PM0.66m
6:54AM1.27m
7:16PM0.70m
7:48AM1.34m
8:12PM0.76m
8:38AM1.37m
9:03PM0.83m
9:25AM1.37m
9:50PM0.88m
10:09AM1.32m
10:37PM0.93m
Low Tide
11:45AM0.38m
10:35PM0.24m
12:57PM0.30m
11:44PM0.21m
1:53PM0.23m
00:49AM0.16m
2:42PM0.16m
1:47AM0.12m
3:25PM0.12m
2:42AM0.10m
4:06PM0.09m
3:34AM0.11m
4:45PM0.09m
4:24AM0.14m
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
clear
part cloud
part cloud
cloud
cloud
part cloud
clear
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:05
7:03
7:03
7:03
7:03
7:01
7:01
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
6:28
6:28
6:29
6:29
6:29
6:30
6:30
 mm
Temp °C
17
18
16
17
18
16
17
19
17
19
21
22
24
21
18
20
20
18
19
20
17
Feels °C
17
17
17
18
17
16
18
18
18
19
21
20
22
20
20
21
20
20
20
20
19
  • Map Icons:
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  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
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Information about the El Gringo Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for El Gringo provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at El Gringo can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our El Gringo surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (El Gringo) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).

Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for El Gringo may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.

El Gringo is 5 km (3 miles) from the city of Arica. If you plan a holiday in Atacama, look for hotels and other accommodation in Arica. Arica has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

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