Playa Manzanillo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at the stretch ahead for Playa Manzanillo.

Right off the bat, we’ve got a bit of a slow start. The first couple of days are pretty ordinary – Wednesday morning you can get a wave on a tiny 1ft SW swell, but it’s just not doing much. The afternoon is a write-off with onshore wind and storms threatening. Thursday’s not much better with that cross-on breeze messing up 3ft to 2ft swell. Honestly, it’s a bit of a flat, grotty start to the outlook.

But then, Friday the 7th morning is where it first turns on. The wind goes glassy, and we see a 2ft SSW groundswell with a long 18 second period pushing through. The energy is solid (502) and the conditions are looking clean. It’s a small, clean wave, but it’ll be rideable and fun on a log or a fish.

The real standout window, though, is Saturday the 15th. That morning, we’ve got a clean 5ft SW swell, glassy as it gets, and the energy is pumping (1096). That’s a proper size for an intermediate crew, and with the wind off the land, it’s going to be smooth. This is the pick of the whole run – a solid, clean south swell, groomed to perfection. Given the consistency here is *inconsistent*, this is a rare treat.

The build-up to that is good too. The morning of Friday the 14th sees a 4ft SW swell, 18 second period, and glassy winds – strong energy (995) and very clean. Then Sunday the 16th morning holds that 4ft SW swell clean as well. There’s a solid run of mornings from the 7th right through to the 20th, with most mornings offering something clean and glassy. The afternoons, almost without fail, get ruined by storms and cross-on breezes, so it’s strictly a dawn patrol deal.

This spot is a beach and reef setup, exposed to the west-northwest, and the optimum swell direction is from the west-northwest, but this whole run is a solid SW swell. It’s a touch off the ideal, but with that long period (14-18 seconds), the waves will have plenty of shape. The water is sitting at 87°F, which is a whopping 4°F warmer than normal, so it’s going to feel like a bath out there.

The week two period from the 14th onward is the real gold. The 15th morning is the absolute standout – don’t miss it. Crowds are listed as ‘sometimes’, so you might get a few others in on the act, but with that quality and clean conditions, it’s worth sharing.

Short version: The first two days are a write-off. From Friday the 7th morning, it gets going. The best is Saturday the 15th morning – a 5ft, glassy, clean SW groundswell for the experienced crew. Don’t sleep on the 14th or 16th mornings either.

Rusty.

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