El Roque Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you—this 16-day window is a bit of a grind. We're looking at a lot of onshore and cross-onshore wind, and that El Roque reef is going to be feeling it. The swell is there, but the quality is just not cooperating for a while. We're talking about a long stretch of poor, choppy conditions.

The first few days are a write-off. Tuesday the 4th has a 5ft swell from the NNE, but it's getting chopped up by a cross-on breeze. That sets the tone for the next week and a half. The swell builds through the week, hitting that 6ft mark by Thursday the 6th, but it's still coming from the NE and the wind is just ruining it. The energy is moderate, but it's all for nothing.

We see onshore winds through the weekend and into the next week. The swell stays in that 5ft to 6ft range, with periods of 7 to 8 seconds, but the wind just won't give us a break. It's frustrating because the size is okay for a beginner-friendly reef, but the conditions are far from clean. This is a long gap with no good options.

Now, hold on. As we get into the second week, things start to look a little more promising. The 15th of August is when the energy really starts to build, with strong wave energy. The swell is up to 8ft, and while it's still cross-on, the wind is lighter. We're finally getting a window.

But the real standout, the one to keep an eye on, is the morning of Sunday the 16th. The swell is a solid 7ft from the NNE, and the wind drops to a light breeze. It’s the only time in the whole forecast that we get a "marginal" call instead of "poor." This is our best shot. The water temp is 74°, which is about normal for this time of year, so the 1° anomaly isn't a big deal.

This is a reef break that's exposed to the north, so it’s going to get all that swell. It's fairly consistent, too, which is a bonus. The light wind will make it significantly cleaner than anything we've seen all week. It’s not going to be perfect, but it's the best we've got. The swell direction is NNE, which is close to the optimum NNW, so it will be a bit off, but still worth the paddle. After that, the swell starts to fade back down to around 5ft by the 17th, and the wind picks back up, so that Sunday morning window is the one.

Look, it's not a great outlook, but that one morning on the 16th has some potential. Long-range, so don't book your life around it, but it's a reason to keep the board in the car.

Rusty.

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