La Santa - The Slab Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s happening at La Santa – The Slab.

Honestly, looking at the whole 16-day window, I gotta be straight with you – this is a tough stretch. There’s a lot of north and north-northeast wind hammering the place, and we never really get a clean, proper swell direction that lines up with what this spot craves. The water is running a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, sitting at 75°F, but that’s small comfort when the waves are just not cooperating.

The week kicks off from Wednesday the 19th with small, weak swell around 3ft to 4ft from the north, but the wind is blowing cross-shore or cross-off, and the energy is weak – we’re talking combined energy values in the 150-200 range. The surf is poor, full of chop. Not worth paddling out.

Thursday the 20th looks similar. Still small, still northerly, and the wind picks up a bit. The wave quality is just not there. This pattern drags on through Friday the 21st with a slight bump in size to 5ft, but the period drops to a super short 6 seconds. That’s weak, jumbled junk.

Saturday the 22nd is more of the same – small, short-period, and messy. The wind stays on it.

Now, Sunday the 23rd, we see a glimmer. The swell is still only 4ft, but the period jumps to 10 seconds and the combined energy hits 444 – that’s moderate energy. The wind is cross-off and clean. It’s marginal, but if you’re desperate, it’s the best we’ve seen. The swell direction is north, and this spot really wants WNW, so don’t expect perfection.

Monday the 24th, the swell shifts slightly to the NNW with a 10-second period, and the energy is still decent at 348 in the morning. The wind is a clean cross-off, but it’s fresh at 22 mph by the afternoon. Still, a marginal call but the cleanest window of the day.

After that, it’s a long, stubborn gap. From Tuesday the 25th all the way through to the end of the forecast on September 3rd, the wind is a relentless NNE cross-off, blowing 22 to 25 mph. The swell builds – by Thursday the 27th we’re seeing 8ft to 8ft from the NNE, with combined energy roaring up to 779 and 852. That’s strong energy, but the period is short, around 7-8 seconds, and the wind is just too strong for a clean surf. The wave comment is consistently “poor surf conditions.” This is a reef break, and with that much wind and short-period swell, it’s going to be a washing machine. Honestly, with that setup, it’s more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The standout, if you can call it that, is the morning of Sunday the 23rd. It’s the only time the swell period gets long enough to have some push, and the wind is manageable. But it’s still small and not the right direction. For the rest of the month, we’re just waiting for a break in the wind that never comes.

Rusty out.

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