Porto da Cruz Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, it’s your local surf reporter Rusty here. I’ve been staring at the charts for the coming weeks and I gotta be straight with you – it’s a tough outlook for Porto da Cruz. This is a reef break, fair to say it’s fairly consistent, but the conditions are just not lining up for us.

Right off the bat, it’s a rough start. The first decent surf we see isn’t really decent at all. For the first week and a half, it’s a whole lot of nothing. From Thursday the 23rd of July all the way through to Saturday the 1st of August, every single session is marked as poor surf conditions. The wind is a constant cross-onshore, mostly from the north, and the swell is small and weak. We’re looking at waves around 3ft to 5ft, but the period is short, only 6 to 8 seconds, so it’s weak and messy. The combined wave energy stays low, barely cracking 200 (94 to 239), so it’s just not worth paddling out. The water temp is a touch warmer than normal at 75° but that’s the only nice thing I can say.

Now, look, there is a flicker of hope but it’s a long way off. On Sunday the 2nd of August, the swell picks up a bit. The morning shows a 5ft ENE swell with a 7-second period, and the combined energy jumps to 346. The wind is light from the north, so it’s not too choppy. It’s a marginal call, but it’s the best we’ve got. The afternoon gets a 5ft NE swell and the energy hits 439, but the wind turns onshore, making it a write-off.

Then we get into a weird period. Monday the 3rd and Tuesday the 4th of August see a long-period groundswell roll in, 11 seconds, from the north. The swell is around 4ft to 4ft, and the energy is strong (over 500). You’d think that’s good news, right? But the wind is still cross-onshore, and the report is still poor. The long period means the waves will have more shape and energy, but at a reef break like Porto da Cruz, a northerly swell with a gnarly cross-wind is just not going to clean up. It’s frustrating.

After that, it drops off again. From Wednesday the 5th of August onward, the swell fades to 2ft to 3ft with weak energy, and the wind stays on it. The last few days are a complete bust.

So, the honest truth: there is no standout session in this 16-day window. The only day that even gets a score of 1 out of 10 is the morning of Sunday the 2nd of August. That’s the one to watch, but even then, don’t expect perfection. It’s a real bummer, but that’s the way it goes sometimes. Forecasts can change, so keep an eye on it, but for now, I’d be leaving the board at home.

Rusty.

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