La Derecha del Cartel Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s cookin’ at La Derecha del Cartel over the next couple of weeks. It’s a reef break that needs a solid NW swell to fire, and the report’s lookin’ a bit patchy, so strap in.

Right off the bat, the first day with anything worth paddling out for is Tuesday morning, September 8th. The water’s sittin’ at 76°, which is about what you’d expect for this time of year—no freakish warm or cold spike. We’ve got a little 2ft groundswell from the NW, with a lovely 11-second period, and clean glassy conditions with a whisper of S wind at 3 mph. Wave energy’s weak though, only a reading of 114 (combined energy of all swells directed here). It’s surfable, but very ordinary—small, clean little peelers for a log or a mini-mal. The afternoon is even smaller at 2ft, same glassy feel, but the energy drops to 58. It’s a Tuesday session for those who just need a saltwater fix.

Wednesday the 9th is a bit of a weird one. Morning and afternoon both show 3ft and 4ft of short-period junk from the NE, period a paltry 5 seconds. Winds are glassy in the morning, then glassy from the S in the arvo, but that short period means the waves will be crumbly and weak. Energy readings of 85 and 89 back that up. It’s surfable, sure, but it’s not gonna get your heart racing—more of a splash about.

Now, here’s the kicker: from Thursday the 10th right through to Sunday the 20th of September, it’s a long dry spell. That’s nearly a week and a half of poor surf conditions. The swell heights bounce between 0.7ft and 3ft, with mostly weak energy readings in the teens and twenties, and the winds are off, cross-off, or glassy—but there’s just not enough swell to make anything of it. A few sessions on Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 13th have glassy 2ft and 3ft slop from NE and NNW, with periods around 7–8 seconds, but the energy’s only 72 and 80. It’s clean, small, and unexciting. Definitely not a standout.

The best on offer across the whole 16-day window comes late in the forecast, on Wednesday the 23rd of September. Morning has 1ft of NW groundswell with a very long 15-second period, calm and glassy, and energy of 58. The afternoon picks up a clean offshore SE breeze at 6 mph, same 1ft from the NW, with a 14-second period and energy of 58. That’s a proper long-period groundswell—real slow, real clean lines, and for a reef setup like this, it could produce some tidy little waves if the direction locks in. It’s small, but the quality could be there for a patient surfer on a longboard. This is the one to keep an eye on, but with it being so far out, treat it as a promising whisper, not a guarantee.

Overall, it’s a flat and poor two weeks with one tiny glimmer of hope at the tail end. If you’re desperate, the 8th and 9th are your best bet for a splash, but don’t expect much. The crowds at La Derecha del Cartel can be an issue when it’s firing, but with this forecast? You’ll have the place to yourself.

Rusty

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