El Palito Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s break down the next couple of weeks.

To be honest, it’s a pretty bleak outlook for the full 16 days. There’s really no good surf on offer, and we’ve got a long stretch of nothing. The first record shows a tiny bit of small swell on Thursday 23rd July, but it’s so poor you wouldn’t bother. The wind is a light cross-on from the north at 6 mph, and the waves are just messy. There’s a risk of thunderstorms, and the water temp is sitting at 82°, which is about average for the time of year.

For the next few days, it’s a total write-off. Friday the 24th, Saturday the 25th... all zero swell or poor conditions. The wind keeps swinging cross-on, and there’s nothing but tiny ripples. We get a glassy moment early Sunday morning 26th July, but there’s no swell to ride – it’s flat calm. Later that afternoon a tiny 2 ft swell from the NE shows up but the energy is weak (47) and the direction is cross-off, so not worth getting excited about.

Monday 27th July morning is the closest thing to a highlight, and that’s saying something. At El Palito (beach and breakwater), there’s a 3 ft NE swell, short period at 7 seconds, and the wind goes glassy. The combined energy is weak (61). It’s surfable, but very ordinary. Crowds are sometimes an issue here, but honestly, with waves this small, it won’t be packed. The swell direction is NNE, which is the optimum for this spot, so the shape might be okay for beginners. After that, it’s back to nothing.

Tuesday 28th July through to Friday 7th August? Dead. We get a few mornings with glassy conditions, like 29th July and 6th August, but there’s no swell to speak of. The wind is often onshore or cross-on, and the few little pulses that appear – like 2 ft – are accompanied by poor conditions and weak energy. Honestly, there’s nothing here for a surfer who wants a proper wave. If you’re a kite surfer, some of those afternoons with moderate cross-onshore winds and a bit of chop might be more interesting, but that’s not my game.

The standout? There isn’t one. The best of a bad bunch is Monday 27th July morning, but it’s barely a ripple. For the rest, it’s a long dry spell. This area just doesn’t have much going on in this window.

Rusty.

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