El Palito Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for our local stretch.

To be straight with you, the next two weeks are looking pretty grim for a proper paddle session. We’ve got a long, quiet run ahead. From now through the end of July and well into the first few days of August, it’s a whole lot of nothing special. The swell is tiny – mostly around 2ft to 3ft, and it’s coming from the NE with a short, weak period of only 6 to 7 seconds. That’s windswell, not groundswell. The combined wave energy stays low, between 32 and 63 (weak energy), and the wind is almost always cross-onshore or onshore, which is chopping things up. On top of that, we’ve got a risk of thunderstorms on the afternoons. Honestly, the surf quality is just poor. There’s a big gap from late July right through to the middle of the first week of August where there’s barely any rideable swell at all – many days showing zero wave energy.

El Palito (beach and breakwater) is the only break in the frame, and it’s a beginner-friendly spot that’s fairly consistent, but that doesn’t mean the surf is good. It’s exposed to the NNE, and the optimum swell direction is NNE – so the direction is not the problem, but the size and power just aren’t there. The water temperature is sitting at about 82°F, which is pretty much normal for this time of year, with the anomaly at just 0.4°F, so it’s average for July.

After a very long flat spell, the last few days of the outlook from the 8th of August onwards show a slight pulse, but nothing to get excited about. On the morning of Saturday the 8th, there is no swell, but the afternoon sees a 3ft NE swell with a period of 7 seconds and combined energy of 93 (still weak). Winds are cross-onshore and choppy – still poor surf conditions. Then on the morning of Sunday the 9th of August, we get a tiny 0.3ft swell from the NE with a long period of 12 seconds, but the combined energy is only 6, so it’s essentially flat. That long period stuff is groundswell, but with almost no height, it’s not going to break properly.

There is no standout session here. Nothing is worth paddling out for. The whole 16-day window is a write-off for quality surf. The setups here are beach and breakwater, and with the onshore wind and small, weak swell, this is more of a kite-surfing breeze than a surfer’s wave. It tends not to stay this poor for long, and forecasts can change, so keep an eye on it, but right now, leave the board at home.

- Rusty

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