Matanzas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here, digging into the outlook for the Matanzas region.

Alright, so it’s a bit of a mixed bag ahead. We’ve got a decent run of surf potential, but you’ve got to pick your windows carefully because the wind, especially in the afternoons, is gonna mess things up quite a bit. The first proper swell energy shows up on Tuesday the 11th, but the conditions are rough, so we’ll be skipping that. The real story for the coming week is a period of clean, smaller waves bookended by some stronger, but messier, swells.

We start with a bit of a gap. Tuesday the 11th and Wednesday the 12th are a write-off for decent surf – onshore or cross-shore winds and choppy conditions have the score at zero or nearly zero. You’d be wasting your energy. Thursday the 13th is where we get our first real chance, and it’s a good one.

Thursday the 13th morning is your first standout. The conditions are *glass* – that’s about as good as it gets. The wind is a slight NNE breeze, which is offshore for Matanzas. You’re looking at a 4 ft swell from the WSW, which is the optimum direction for this reef. The period is a solid 16 seconds, so it’s a proper groundswell with good shape, but that long period can make it a bit straight on a beach break, but for a reef like this, it’s prime. The water is sitting at 56°, which is bang on average for the time of year. The combined energy is strong at 675. Get out there early, the crowds are *sometimes* a factor here, and this will be worth it. The afternoon stays clean with a light cross-offshore breeze from the NNE, dropping to a 4 ft swell.

Friday the 14th remains clean through the day with a lighter 4 ft WNW swell in the afternoon and great cross-off winds. Saturday the 15th sees a bigger bump coming through – a 5 ft WNW swell in the morning and 5 ft from the west in the afternoon. It’s clean again, but the combined energy is starting to pump up, hitting 928 in the morning. That’s strong, but the wind is still cross-off, so it’s surfable for decent crew, though the size is getting a bit much for beginners.

Sunday the 16th starts clean with a small 3 ft WSW swell, but the afternoon turns to garbage – strong cross-on southerly wind makes it choppy and poor.

Now, we’ve got a big lull in quality conditions for a few days. Monday and Tuesday the 17th and 18th are completely ruled by strong, wrong winds. The afternoons are all onshore chop.

Wednesday the 19th is the big event for the second week. This is the power swing. The swell jumps to 6 ft from the WSW, and the combined energy is massive – 1415 on the morning. That is very strong energy. The wind is only a light cross-shore, so the surface will be okay, not perfect. The period drops to 14 seconds. This is serious size, over the 5 ft mark, and getting close to the 8 ft expert zone. Definitely one for experienced surfers only. The strong onshore in the afternoon will trash it though.

The rest of the week stays in that 5 ft to 7 ft range but with moderate to fresh cross-shore winds, so it’s going to be lumpy. It’s not a total loss, but Thursday and Friday the 20th and 21st are marginal. Sunday the 23rd sees a drop back to small clean waves, but the real party is over.

The Best on Offer: Without a doubt, Thursday morning the 13th is the pick of the trip. Glassy conditions, a solid 4 ft groundswell from the optimum direction, and that long 16-second period will draw some beautiful lines across the reef. The Wednesday the 19th morning is a close second for the bigger, more powerful crew, but you have to be ready for a much heavier, more challenging wave with very strong energy (1415).

Rusty out.

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