Montanita Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, I'm Rusty, and let's get into it. The next 16 days look like a slow grind here at Montanita, with a lot of marginal and poor conditions. The first few days are a write-off, so we're in for a wait before anything remotely decent shows up.

The water temp is sitting about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

Starting now, Wednesday the 26th of August, it's flat and messy. We've got a weak 1 ft swell from the SW with a long period of 14 seconds, but the energy is pathetic at just 121 and the wind is a light cross-onshore. It's a no-go for the next several days. Thursday and Friday are much the same, with the swell barely breaking 4 ft by Friday afternoon, but the wind is onshore and the quality is still marginal at best. The combined energy gets up to around 803 (moderate), but it's not worth paddling out for.

Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th see a bit more size, with 5 ft swell from the WSW, but the wind is still light cross-onshore or onshore, and the period drops to 13-15 seconds. The energy is moderate (898 down to 560), but it's still a messy, marginal setup. The first week truly offers nothing for a surfer.

We slide into a quiet gap through the start of September. From Monday the 31st to Thursday the 3rd, it's poor with heights under 3 ft and weak energies. A few glimmers of marginal surf on the 3rd and 4th, with the swell bumping up to 5 ft on Friday the 4th and the energy hitting 1050 (strong), but with onshore winds and a period of 16 seconds, it's still not clean.

The real standout is the first week of September. The morning of Monday the 7th sees a 3 ft swell from the WSW with a 13 second period and moderate energy of 692, but it's not until the 8th of September that things get interesting. Tuesday the 8th morning brings a 4 ft SW swell with a long period of 18 seconds and a combined energy of 1143 (strong). The wind is light cross-onshore, which is the best we've seen. This is the pick of the period: a solid groundswell with good energy, and the break is a reef and point setup, which handles long-period swells well. The swell direction is from the SW, which is close to the optimum SW direction, so it should shape up nicely. Crowds are possible here, but with conditions this average, it might not be packed.

Wednesday the 9th of September morning is also worth a look, with a 5 ft SW swell, 16 seconds period, and 1141 energy (strong), with light cross-onshore winds and clear skies. That's another decent window for a paddle.

After that, things fade again. The morning of Thursday the 10th of September has a 4 ft SW swell with 15 seconds period and 835 energy (moderate), but the wind is a gentle cross-onshore, making it a bit choppy. It's a marginal finish.

Overall, the best session of the 16 days is the morning of Tuesday the 8th of September, and maybe the 9th. The swell is moderate (4 ft-5 ft), the period is long (16-18 seconds), and the light cross-onshore wind will keep it reasonably clean. It's not a classic, but it's the only window that has a pulse.

Rusty.

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