Porto da Cruz Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you. This 16-day window for Porto da Cruz is a tough one. We’re looking at a stretch of poor surf conditions, with all recommendations coming in at zero until the very end. It’s a long stretch of onshores and chopped-up waves, so manage your expectations.

We start off on Monday afternoon, August 17th, with the water temperature at a notable 77°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year. The swell is small, around 5ft from the NNE, but with a cross-on wind, it's just messy. The energy is weak at 313, and honestly, it's not worth getting wet for.

The next few days follow the same pattern. Tuesday the 18th through Thursday the 20th keep the NNE swell in the 4ft to 5ft range, but the cross-shore winds keep things lumpy. Wave energy stays weak to moderate, in the 176 to 294 range. It’s all poor surf conditions, I’m afraid.

Friday the 21st pushes the swell up a touch to 5ft in the morning, but the wind is still cross-on and it’s choppy. The energy is moderate at 301. Then Saturday the 22nd sees the swell drop right off to 2ft with that long period of 10 seconds. The energy drops to the 137-184 range. It’s small and weak, not doing much for us.

Sunday the 23rd brings a pulse. The swell builds to 7ft by the afternoon with a jump in energy to 582, which is moderate. But the wind is howling cross-on at 12 mph, so it’s going to be a messy 6-foot wave. This is more of a white-knuckle session than a smooth ride, and at this size, it's pushing past what beginners should be dealing with.

The start of the new week, Monday the 24th and Tuesday the 25th, stays poor. The swell drops back down to 5ft and then 3ft, with onshore winds and chopped-up faces. The wave energy stays weak to moderate between 152 and 283. The break stays mostly in the 2ft to 4ft range for the 26th, with energy dropping into the weak zone.

The gap of poor surf continues through the 27th, with weak 4ft to 4ft swell and cross-on winds. It’s a long, flat, and bumpy stretch.

Now, looking ahead to the end of the window. On Friday, August 28th, things start to pick up. The swell is up to 6ft in the morning and 6ft in the afternoon, with the energy jumping to a strong 865 by the afternoon. The period is a short 8 seconds, though, and it's still cross-on. This is a bigger, more powerful swell, but it’s going to be lumpy and challenging. For the experts, there might be something there, but for the rest of us, it's a wrestling match.

This energy and swell carries into Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th, with swell holding in the 5ft to 5ft range and energy staying strong in the 299 to 406 range. The wind stays cross-on, so the quality remains poor. The period is still short and weak.

We finish the window on Monday, August 31st, with solid 6ft swell from the NNE. The energy is strong at 394-412, but again, the cross-on wind keeps it from being clean. All of this builds to the one standout call of the period, which is Tuesday, September 1st. The swell is 6ft, but the wind finally drops to a light 6 mph. It's a cross-on breeze, but light, which will keep conditions cleaner. The period stretches to 9 seconds, and the energy is strong at 465-538. This is the best of a bad bunch, a last-day glimmer of hope. It’s still not perfect, but it’s the only day that even sniffs at being surfable. If you’ve got a board you don’t mind dinging, that’s your best shot.

So, the long and short of it is: the first two weeks are a write-off. Don’t bother paddling out unless you love frustration. The light at the end of the tunnel is that Tuesday, September 1st, could have some clean enough waves on offer, but it’s a long way off and things can change. Keep the faith, but be prepared to be let down.

Rusty out.

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