Playa de Patos (El Pico) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks. Rusty here. Let’s get into it.

We’ve got a bit of a mixed bag coming up. The surf kicks off Friday morning, and the first few days are the real deal, but after that, we hit a long dry spell. This isn’t a complete washout, but you’ll need to pick your moments.

Things start strong on Friday, August 28th. Playa de Patos (El Pico) is the standout. We’re looking at a solid 8ft to 8ft of groundswell rumbling in from the WNW with a 10-second period. The combined energy is pumping at (1105), so there’s a lot of power in the water. That’s proper surf. The wind is a light cross-off, keeping the surface clean. This is a bit of a beast, over 7ft, so it’s really for the experienced crew. The water temp is sitting around 65°, which is pretty normal for this time of year.

Saturday, August 29th, settles down a bit. The swell drops to 5ft-5ft from the WNW, with a shorter 8-second period. The energy drops to (237-259). It’s still clean, especially Saturday afternoon with a gentle offshore wind. This is a good, manageable size for a wider range of surfers, but it’s not the quality of Friday.

Sunday, August 30th, is a nice little window. The swell is 4ft-5ft from the WNW, period bumps up to 9 seconds, and the energy is a moderate (307). Sunday morning looks glassy with a light offshore wind from the south. That’s a clean, fun size for a typical intermediate.

Then we hit a wall. From Monday, August 31st, all the way through to the end of the first week of September, the conditions are poor. The wind turns onshore or cross-on, and the swell drops into the tiny range. There’s a gap of about 8 days where the surf is basically not worth paddling out for.

We do see a flicker of promise on the 4th of September, with a glassy morning and a 2ft NW groundswell, but it’s not enough to get excited about.

The next real chance comes on Saturday, September 5th. The morning looks glassy again with a 5ft swell from the NW, a 12-second period, and energy back up to (606). That’s a good, clean swell. The afternoon picks up a little cross-on wind, but the morning is the one to chase.

After that, it’s back to poor conditions with onshore winds and small, weak swells for the rest of the window. There is a late-developing potential on the 12th of September. We’re looking at a 3ft swell from the WNW with a long 15-second period and clean offshore winds. That’s a promising sign for the second week, but it’s a long way off. If that holds, it’ll be a clean, lined-up day at the point.

Bottom line: The best surf by far is Friday, August 28th at Playa de Patos. That’s the big one. If you miss that, the next best window is the morning of Saturday, September 5th. Get on it.

Rusty.

Read more