La Santa - El Quemao Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, pull up a stool and listen up. Rusty here, and I’ve been staring at the charts for our little corner of the Atlantic. It’s a tale of two halves, I tell ya. For a place that can pump with the best of ’em, we’re looking at a long, dry spell before a proper pulse of energy finally arrives later in the month.

The only real window comes in hot and heavy, but it’s for the brave. La Santa - El Quemao is a world-class reef, an expert-only wave on its best day, and it doesn’t get much better than that. The water temp is sitting at 71°, which is about what you’d expect for this time of year.

The action kicks off on Friday afternoon, July 3rd. We get a glassy, clean 5 ft swell from the north with a moderate 9-second period. The combined energy is a solid 432 (moderate), and the conditions are looking promising. The wind is a light 3 mph from the northwest, making it glassy. This is the pick of the bunch by a long shot, with that clean, offshore feel.

After that, things go quiet. Real quiet. From Saturday the 4th right the way through to Monday the 13th of July, it’s a bleak run of poor surf. The winds turn onshore or cross-onshore and the swell drops. Don’t bother paddling out.

Now, for the patient ones. Around Tuesday the 14th of July, things change. The swell builds from the north at 5 ft, the period stretches out to a decent 10 seconds, and the wave energy jumps to 763 (strong). The problem? The wind stays up at 16 mph from the north-northeast, blowing cross-onshore, which will put a chop on it. The following days carry a similar theme: solid north swell, but with stiff, onshore winds. On Wednesday the 15th of July we still have a good 5 ft north swell, but that onshore flow will ruin the perfection El Quemao is famous for.

If you’re an expert who doesn’t mind a bit of wind bump for a powerful wave, the period from July 14th onward has the energy. But for most of us, that one Friday afternoon on the 3rd is the only true standout. For the rest of the month, it looks more appealing for the kite surfers with all that lumpy, cross-onshore wind and a consistent swell.

Be patient, lads. The end of the forecast window shows promise, but it’s a long way off.

Rusty.

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