Hornitos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at the surf outlook for Hornitos over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, this Saturday afternoon (18 July) is a real gem. We’ve got a clean 4ft swell from the WSW with a 10-second period, and the wind is glassy – just a light westerly breeze that’s gone flat. The water’s a touch warmer than normal, sitting at 63°, which is about 2° above the usual for this time of year. The combined energy is solidly moderate (374), and everything’s set for a fun, uncrowded session. It’s a consistent, fairly exposed spot, so expect a few waves. Hornitos is an intermediate-friendly break, and this is the best on offer right now.

Sunday (19 July) is a bit of a letdown. The swell picks up slightly to 4ft, still from the WSW, but the wind goes cross-on and then cross-shore, messing with the surface. The energy is higher (509), but the quality drops, so it’s a pass.

We hit a bit of a dry spell from Monday (20 July) through to Friday (24 July). The swell hangs around 3ft to 4ft, but the wind is always cross-on or cross-shore, and the conditions are marginal to poor. Not worth paddling out.

Then, Saturday (25 July) and Sunday (26 July) start to look a bit better. The swell drops to 3ft to 2ft, but the wind lightens up. Sunday afternoon (26 July) is glassy again, with a 2ft swell from the SW. That’s a very long-period swell at 17 seconds, which means it’ll have real push and shape, but the size is tiny. The energy is still moderate (466), so if you’re on a log, it might be a fun glassy session.

But the real standout is coming up on Tuesday, 28 July. The swell jumps to 6ft in the morning and 7ft in the afternoon, all from the WSW with a 15-second period. The combined energy is huge – 2430 and 2037 – that’s very strong wave energy. The wind is light too, with the morning showing glassy conditions on Wednesday, 29 July, where the swell is a solid 6ft, also from the WSW, with a 13-second period, and the energy is 1194. This is serious groundswell. For Hornitos, a point break, that long period will make for some well-shaped, setty waves. But heads up – at 6ft to 7ft, it’s getting into expert territory, so beginners should sit this one out. The crowds are sometimes an issue, but with this quality, it’ll be worth it.

Thursday, 30 July, sees the swell drop back to 4ft, with cross-shore winds, and Friday, 31 July, is glassy but tiny at 3ft. The first of August (Saturday) has some glassy, clean 3ft swell with a very long 16-second period, so a log day.

Sunday, 2 August, ends the outlook with a 5ft SW swell and 14-second period, but the wind is cross-on and the sky’s cloudy. The energy is strong (881-964), but the conditions are only marginal.

Overall, the best bets are this Saturday afternoon (18 July) for a clean, fun session, and the big groundswell window from Tuesday, 28 July through Wednesday, 29 July for the experts. That Wednesday morning (29 July) with glassy winds and 6ft swell is the one to circle on the calendar.

Rusty.

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