Los Locos Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let’s be honest with you right off the bat: the next couple of weeks are looking pretty darn flat for us here at Los Locos. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. This is a stretch where you might be better off doing some maintenance on your boards or daydreaming about the next real swell.

There’s a real gap at the start. We’ve got nothing worth paddling out for from the 7th through the 13th. We’re talking about tiny waves, with the swell hovering around 0.7ft to 2ft, and a whole lot of those days have poor surf conditions. The energy in the water is just gutless, with readings down in the double digits and low hundreds, like 12 and 31. It’s the kind of stuff that’s barely a ripple.

There is a slight pulse of energy, a moderate wave energy reading of 106 on Sunday the 9th, but the swell is messy with light cross-onshore winds, so it’s not going to be any good. The water is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year, sitting at 73°F, which is about 3°F above the norm. Nice for sitting on the beach, but not for much else.

We finally see a tiny blip of life around the 10th and 11th, with some surfable but very ordinary conditions. You might find a knee-high wave at 2ft from the NW, but it’s weak and unexciting. Trust me, it’s not worth getting wet for. The 14th brings a bit more size (2ft) but it’s crossed up and junky.

The 16th and 17th still aren't anything to write home about. The swell is there, but it’s mostly short-period slop. We have a bit of a bump in energy around the 17th, hitting 134, but the wind is up and the surf quality is poor. It looks like a mess out there. Then, around the 20th and 21st, we start to see things finally turning a corner.

On the 21st (Friday), the wind finally swings offshore from the NE, and we see that swell reading jump to 205 in the afternoon. It’s still small at 3ft, but it’s clean, glassy, and from the NW. For the first time in a while, there might be a fun, tiny wave for the loggers out there. This is a glimmer of hope.

Now, for the promised land. Saturday the 22nd is where it gets interesting, but it comes with a major caveat. The swell really fills in, jumping to 5ft, and the energy is strong, hitting 543. That’s the biggest pulse in the whole forecast. But, the wind absolutely howls from the WNW at 19 mph, which is going to chop it all up. It’s going to be a lumpy, cross-onshore mess. For a spot like this, with that much wind and swell, the lineup is going to be a washing machine. To be honest, with that much onshore wind, the setup looks way more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

So, here’s the long and short of it. We’ve got a solid week plus of flatness, then some promise on the 21st for a clean, small day. That’s your best bet. The bigger swell on the 22nd is a disappointment due to wind, but it does show the ocean is waking up. The lack of consistency in the forecast is a bit of a bummer, but that’s not unusual for this area. It won't stay poor for long. Keep your head up, and be ready for that Friday the 21st.

Rusty out.

Read more