Guarda do Embau Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s look at this stretch of Guarda do Embau in proper feet and knots.

The next few days are a bit of a struggle. We’ve got a bit of a clean-up happening on Sunday the 26th of July, with the morning looking the best of a quiet bunch. There’s a small 3ft SSE swell rolling in with a nice 12-second period – that’s got some decent energy behind it, about 377 (combined energy). The wind is coming from the north at 9 knots, and it’s cross-off, so the face is clean. Water temp is sitting at 65°, which is about normal for this time of year – nothing unusual there. This is a river mouth, so with that longer period, it could be a bit straight, but it’s a beginner-friendly wave. The crowd factor is “sometimes”, so you might have company, but it won’t be a zoo. This is the best of the first week, but it’s still pretty small.

After that, things go flat and messy. Monday morning the 27th is glassy but tiny, and the swell period drops to 8 seconds – that’s short-period windswill, not much push. Tuesday the 28th has a morning bump to 5ft, but that’s a short-period NNE windswell at 6 seconds, and it’s just not worth paddling out for. The energy is moderate at 296, but the quality is poor. From there, we slide into a real lull. Wednesday the 29th and Thursday the 30th are small, weak, and often cross-onshore or just messy. The combined energy drops into the double digits or low hundreds by Friday the 31st – that’s weak. There’s a gap of several days here with nothing worth getting wet for.

Then, on Wednesday the 5th of August, things finally wake up. That morning we’ve got a solid 7ft swell from the ENE, with a period of 8 seconds. The combined energy jumps to 1023 – that’s strong wave energy. The wind is from the NNW at 9 knots and cross-off, so the wave face will be clean. This is big enough to be for experienced surfers only – over 5ft, heading towards 8ft, so it’s not for the groms. This is the standout of the whole forecast. The swell direction is ENE, and the spot likes it from the SE, so it’s a little off the optimum, but the size and clean conditions make it a ripper morning. After that, the afternoon gets messy with cross-shore wind, but that morning session is the one to chase.

The rest of the second week is a bit of a mixed bag. Thursday the 6th has some size (6ft from the S) but the wind is cross-on, so it’s not as clean. The energy is still strong at 832, but it’s a bit of a battle. By the weekend of the 8th and 9th, we’re back to small, weak swell and cross-shore winds. Monday the 10th of August has a 4ft S swell with a long 11-second period and 650 energy, but the wind is cross-shore, so it’s marginal.

So overall, the pick is Sunday the 26th of July morning for a small, clean session, and the big standout is Wednesday the 5th of August morning for the experienced crew. Don’t hold your breath for the rest.

Rusty

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