Hornitos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. We’ve got a mixed bag of a forecast ahead for Hornitos. The water is sitting at about 65°F, which is *much warmer than normal* for this time of year – a proper anomaly of about 4°F – so you’ll be comfy in a spring suit or even a shorty.

Right now, things are flat. The first real week of this forecast is a bit of a write-off for anything decent. From Tuesday morning, August 25th, through to the end of the month, we’re looking at tiny, weak swell. The waves are mostly under 3 ft, with swell energy (combined energy of all swells directed here) barely cracking 90 to 393, which is weak. The wind is cross-on or onshore, and the commentary is all “poor” or “marginal.” It’s not worth paddling out for.

There is a bit of a pulse on Friday, August 28th, with a 7 ft swell from the SW, but it’s got a long 15-second period, which is a groundswell. The combined energy jumps to 1835, which is strong, but the wind is still cross-on. The surf quality is still only “marginal,” and that’s a big size for Hornitos – it’s likely going to be messy and tough. Saturday, August 29th, drops to 5 ft but the wind stays cross-on. Not great.

After that, we get a long dry spell where the swell drops back to 3 ft to 5 ft, still with mainly cross-on winds. The score is a 1 out of 10 for most of those days. Nothing to get excited about.

Then we hit a promising little window. The best standouts in the whole outlook are on Tuesday, September 8th, and Wednesday, September 9th. On the afternoon of the 8th, the wind turns glassy, and we get a 3 ft, 10-second period swell from the SW. The combined energy is 316, which is still moderate, but the glassy conditions will make it clean and fun for a small-wave board. The following day, Wednesday the 9th, the morning has a 2 ft swell from the SW with a longer 14-second period, but the wind is light cross-on. The afternoon of the 9th is the real highlight: the wind goes glassy again, and that 2 ft SW swell with the 14-second period will be clean and lined up. Combined energy is 389 – moderate, but the quality should be there. This is your best bet for a smooth, uncrowded session.

For the rest of the second week, size stays small (2 ft to 5 ft) and the wind is mostly cross-on. It’s not total rubbish, but nothing else stands out like those two glassy afternoons. The consistent theme here is that Hornitos needs a combo of glassy wind and a decent pulse to really work, and that’s finally arriving on the 8th and 9th of September.

Rusty, signing off.

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