Hornitos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s coming our way for Hornitos over the next couple of weeks. It’s a bit of a slow burner, but there’s a glimmer of hope if you’re patient.

We’ve got a real quiet spell to start. From Wednesday the 19th of August right through to the end of the month, it’s pretty bleak. There are a few days with tiny 1ft to 3ft SW swell but the wind is mostly a messy cross or cross-onshore, and the wave energy is weak, barely pushing above 100 (combined energy). Honestly, you’re looking at over a week of nothing worth paddling out for. The morning of Friday the 21st offers a moment of glassy conditions, but with a short period swell of 9 seconds and only 3ft, it’s still just ordinary. That’s a long gap with no real recommendations.

Now, if you can hold out, things finally start to look more interesting as we head into the end of August and the start of September. The standout period kicks off on Friday the 28th of August. We’ve got a proper groundswell arriving from the WSW, pushing 4ft in the morning with a very long period of 17 seconds. The combined energy jumps to a strong 1417 – that’s serious power for Hornitos. By the afternoon, it’s up to 6ft, still with a long 16 second period. The wind is a light cross-onshore, which will keep it a bit lumpy, but the quality of the swell is undeniable.

Saturday the 29th sees the peak, with 7ft of WSW swell in the morning and a period of 14 seconds. That’s getting into the expert territory for sure – this is not a day for beginners. The energy is still huge at 1589. The wind stays a light cross-onshore. The crowd factor is listed as “sometimes,” so you might have a few locals out, but it won’t be a zoo. For a break that’s fairly exposed to the SW, this is the best window we’ve got. The water temp is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

Then, into the first week of September, Wednesday the 2nd brings another pulse: 6ft of SW swell with a solid 13 second period and strong energy (1678). It’s another good option, but by then we’re looking at a more distant call, so less certain. The wind is still a light cross-onshore, which is the main caveat across these better days – we never get pure offshore, just clean-ish.

If the swell gets over 5ft and the quality is marginal, a beach setup like this might actually be more appealing to kite surfers than paddle surfers on the windier afternoons, so keep that in mind.

Bottom line: the first week and a half is a write-off. But the last few days of August and the start of September offer some real, powerful, long-period groundswell. It won’t be perfect, but it’ll be surfable and punchy.

Rusty.

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