Porto da Cruz Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Alright, I’ve been through the numbers for Porto da Cruz and I’ll be honest—this is a tough 16-day stretch. From Friday the 21st of August through Saturday the 5th of September, there’s hardly anything worth getting out of bed for. It’s a long, flat patch with only a couple of blips that might get your attention, but they come with problems. Let me break it down.

First surf shows Friday morning, but it’s a dud. Swell is a weak 4ft from the NNE, wind is a cross-onshore breeze at 12 mph. Water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing special. The combined energy is only 122, which is just a whisper. It’s poor, choppy, and not worth the effort.

Saturday the 22nd is a little better—a 3ft north swell with a period of 10 seconds, light cross-shore wind at 3 mph, energy at 195. Still labelled as poor surf. The wind is light, so it’s not a complete mess, but it’s small and weak. Not a call to action.

Sunday the 23rd is where things get interesting, but only for the brave. The swell jumps to 8ft from the NNW with a very long period of 13 seconds—that’s proper groundswell, with energy hitting 1877. That’s a lot of power. But it’s cross-shore wind at 6 mph, and this is a reef break. At that size—over 7ft—only experts should be out there. The long period means it’ll have long gaps between sets, but at a reef, it might line up well. Still, the forecast calls it “marginal” with questionable tide. Not a standout for most.

Monday the 24th drops to 6ft, still poor. From Tuesday the 25th onward, it’s a slow fade—swell below 5ft, often under 3ft, with onshore winds and weak energy. There’s a big gap of several days here, from Monday afternoon right through the end of the month, where there’s just no surf recommended. Dead quiet.

The first days of September show a small pulse around Friday the 4th of September, with 6ft from the NE and energy at 452, but it’s cross-onshore again at 12 mph. Choppy. Saturday the 5th sees 8ft from the NE—expert-only size—but the wind is cross-onshore at 9 mph. Energy hits 783, so there’s power, but the quality is poor.

Best on offer? Maybe Sunday morning the 23rd for the hardcore crew. That 8ft groundswell with a 13-second period and light cross-shore wind has some muscle, but it’s not clean. If you’re an expert and can handle a bit of chop, you might pull a couple. For everyone else, this is a blank stretch. It’s just how it goes sometimes around here when the wind and swell don’t line up. We’ll wait for the next one.

Rusty.

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