La Balconada Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s break down what’s coming up for La Balconada over the next couple of weeks.

First off, the early days are pretty quiet. On Friday the 31st of July, we’ve got a weak, short-period swell from the SSE, but it’s only 1ft with a stiff 35 km/h cross-off wind. The water’s about 54°, which is normal for this time of year, but the conditions are just poor. Not worth getting wet for.

The first real chance comes on Saturday the 1st of August. The morning shows a jump to 4ft from the east, period 9 seconds, and the combined swell energy is moderate at 210. The wind is a light 10 km/h cross-off, and the report says “expect good surf conditions.” That’s your best early window. The break is exposed to the south, and the swell is coming from the east—not the ideal south, but with clean conditions and that light breeze, it’ll be fun. La Balconada is an advanced spot that’s fairly consistent, but crowds can show up sometimes.

After that, we hit a long stretch of nothing. From Sunday the 2nd right through to Wednesday the 12th of August, it’s mostly small, weak swell with onshore or cross-shore winds. The energy drops into the low range—mostly under 100, with a few days barely hitting 200. The swell rarely gets above 4ft, and the wind is all wrong. There’s a couple of sessions on the 3rd and 5th that are “surfable but very ordinary,” but nothing to get excited about. It’s a dry run of over a week.

Now, the standout. On Thursday the 13th of August, the morning goes glassy with a 8ft swell from the south, period 10 seconds, and the combined energy is a strong 947. The wind is a dead calm 5 km/h, glassy conditions. That’s a solid groundswell with serious power, but it’s not too big for the advanced crew. The optimum swell direction for La Balconada is south, and this matches perfectly. This is the pick of the whole forecast.

Friday the 14th of August is a different story. The swell jumps to 12ft from the SSE, period 13 seconds, and the energy goes insane—4704 in the morning and 6587 in the afternoon. That’s a very strong, long-period groundswell. The wind is light cross-off and clean, but the forecast says it’s too big for this break. At 12ft to 13ft, that’s expert-only territory, and even then, it might be a beast. This one’s for the big-wave crew only.

Saturday the 15th of August stays oversized—13ft in the morning, dropping to 10ft in the afternoon—with the same long-period SSE swell and strong energy. The wind is howling at 30 km/h cross-off, so it’s clean but massive. Again, too big for this spot.

So, to sum it up: the first week is mostly a dud, with a decent session on Saturday morning the 1st of August. The real gem is Thursday the 13th of August—glassy, 8ft south swell, and clean. After that, it’s all about the big, dangerous stuff for experts only. Check the tides and your courage.

Rusty.

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