Playa Pantaleta Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, let’s talk about what’s happening at Pantaleta.

To be straight with you, the next couple of weeks are looking pretty bleak for decent waves at Playa Pantaleta. This is a beach and reef setup, exposed to swell, but the wind and swell combo just aren’t playing ball. We’ve got a long stretch of poor surf conditions ahead.

Right now, the water temp is sitting at 80°, which is about 1°F cooler than normal for this time of year – nothing unusual, just average for the season.

From Thursday the 20th through to the end of August, it’s a mixed bag of cross-shore winds and weak, short-period swell. Most days the swell is below 5 ft, with periods around 6-7 seconds, and the combined wave energy is mostly weak to moderate – for example, the highest early on is just 243 (moderate) on the Friday morning, but the wind is a moderate cross-shore, messing up the surface. There’s a lot of storm risk and those cross-shore breezes are creating chop, not clean lines. Honestly, not worth paddling out.

The energy does pick up a bit around the 30th of August, with swell heights reaching 6 ft and a period of 9 seconds, pushing the combined energy up to 450 (moderate). But again, the wind stays cross-shore and the conditions are still rated poor. Even at 5-6 ft, with short period and gusty wind, it’s not quality surf.

The only real standout in this whole outlook is the morning of Monday the 31st of August. We get a light offshore breeze from the SSE, only 10 km/h (6 mph), which makes for clean conditions. The swell is 4 ft from the ENE, period 7 seconds, and combined energy is 173 (moderate). Then that afternoon, the wind goes totally glassy – zero km/h (0 mph) from the NW. That’s rare. It’s only 4 ft, but with glassy conditions, it’s the best we’ll see. The waves are described as “surfable but very ordinary,” so don’t expect perfection, but it’s the only window with clean, rideable waves.

After that, the first week of September looks like more of the same: cross-shore winds, modest swell, and poor conditions. The morning of the 3rd of September is marginal, with 5 ft ENE swell and moderate energy (206), but still cross-shore wind.

So, if you’re hanging for a surf, mark your calendar for Monday the 31st of August. The morning has a light offshore, and the afternoon is glassy. The swell won’t bowl you over, but it’s the cleanest we’ll get in this run. The rest of the time? You’re better off doing something else.

Rusty.

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