Hornitos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Well, folks, it's Rusty here, and I've gotta be straight with you right off the bat: Hornitos is looking at a tough run for the next couple of weeks. We've got some waves, sure, but finding a truly clean, ripable session is gonna take some patience.

The first window we have is for Wednesday afternoon, the 29th of July. There's a 5ft SW swell rolling in with a 12-second period and a combined energy of 598 – that's a moderate amount of push. The water's sitting at 65°, which is *much warmer than normal* for this time of year, so you can leave the thick wetsuit at home. The wind, however, is a cross-onshore from the SW at 6 mph. It's light, but it's in the wrong direction, leaving the surface with those small wind ripples. We've got a bit of energy, but it's not clean.

Thursday morning the 30th is a bust with poor conditions, and the afternoon gets a little better with a 3ft SW swell and a 13-second period, but the wind is straight onshore. Friday and Saturday are similar stories – the swell hangs around the 3ft to 4ft mark, but that persistent cross-onshore or onshore wind just kills the quality. We go through the whole first week of August with nothing but marginal or poor flags. There's a gap from the 30th of July right through to the 5th of August where there is just no quality surf on offer.

Now, if you're willing to wait, there's a pulse of energy that shows up around Thursday the 6th of August. The morning brings a 5ft SW swell with a very long 16-second period – that's proper groundswell – and the combined energy jumps to 1251, which is strong. The wind is a slight air from the WSW, basically onshore, which is a shame. That very long period will mean long lulls between sets, but the shape should be good, especially for a point or reef setup. Hornitos, being a beach, might see those waves breaking a bit too straight.

The real standout, and I mean the one that might just make it all worth it, is on Thursday the 13th of August. The afternoon session is looking like our best bet. We've got a 7ft swell from the WSW with a 15-second period and a combined energy reading of 1795, which is very strong wave energy. The wind is a slight air from the WSW, which is cross-onshore, but so light it might as well be glass. This is big, powerful, clean surf. At 7ft, it's stepping into the "experts only" territory, so if you're not ready for it, just watch from the sand. That long period will make it a tough paddle but the sets will be well-spaced and powerful.

The rest of the forecast after that drops back down to small, marginal surf until the end of the window on the 13th. So, keep an eye on that Thursday the 13th of August afternoon. It's a long way out, so don't book the day off work just yet, but that's the one with the most promise in this whole outlook.

Rusty.

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