La Palue Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for the next couple of weeks.

To be honest, La Palue is in a bit of a slump for a good stretch here. The first ten days or so are pretty much a write-off. We’ve got a lot of small, weak swell, and the wind just won’t play ball. The overall energy is low, with most days showing combined energy in the triple digits, peaking around 829 on the 28th, but that’s all blown out by strong onshore winds. That bigger energy on the 28th, with a swell of 8ft from the west, is for experts only, and with the wind howling at 25 mph straight onshore, it’s a messy, lumpy mess. For a beach break like La Palue, that setup is more interesting for kite surfing than a clean paddle session.

We’ve got a long gap here with no real standouts. The wind is cross, cross-on, or onshore almost every day, and the swell is either tiny or too short-period to make anything of it. Periods under 8 seconds on the 25th, 26th, and 27th mean weak, choppy waves. The water temp is about 66°F, and that’s pretty normal for this time of year, so it’s not a shock to the system, but the surf quality is rough.

The one bright spot comes right at the end of the outlook. Look at Friday, September 4th, in the morning. We’ve got a swell from the WNW at 4ft, with a period of 10 seconds, and the wind is light from the NE at 3 mph – that’s a clean, cross-offshore breeze. The combined energy is a solid 550, which is decent. The guidance says this spot is an expert break, consistent, and exposed to the west-southwest, and this swell direction is a good match. It’s a long way out, so take it with a grain of salt, but if it holds, La Palue could have some proper, clean waves that morning. The period is good, not too long, so it should shape up nicely on the bank. It’s the only session in the whole 16 days that looks like it’s worth pointing the car at. Crowds are often here, so don’t expect to have it to yourself.

The rest of the second week, from the 3rd to the 6th, has some energy but the wind is always a problem. The 4th afternoon has a bigger 6ft swell, but the wind goes cross-on, so it’ll be chopped. The 5th has clean wind but the swell is dropping. Not much to write home about after that.

So, honestly, it’s a long wait for that one window on the 4th. For now, the ocean is giving us a rest.

Rusty.

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