Praia das Dunas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ve got to be straight with you – the next couple of weeks at Praia das Dunas are looking pretty grim for a proper paddle. There’s a massive gap of dead, poor quality surf right from the start. The only real moment we get something worth talking about is right at the tail end of the forecast. We’re talking about a long, frustrating wait until mid-September for a decent window.

Let’s run through it. Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th are a total write-off. Strong, onshore winds and messy, poor quality surf with combined energy readings around 1034 and 523 – that’s a lot of raw power but completely unsurfable. Saturday the 5th and Sunday the 6th are flat and weak, with energy dropping into the double digits for Sunday. Monday the 7th through to Wednesday the 10th is a wasteland of poor conditions, cross-shore chop, and brutal onshore winds. Thursday the 10th afternoon even sees a 8ft swell, but with a near-gale blowing onshore, that’s just a washing machine. For a beginner-friendly, inconsistent spot like this, you wouldn’t even bother getting the wax out for any of that.

Now, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but it’s a long way off. We finally see a change on Friday the 11th of September. The afternoon brings in a moderate offshore wind from the southwest, cleaning up a 5ft swell from the east with a 9-second period. The combined energy sits at 331 – moderate, but it’s the first time we get clean conditions. This is the standout of the entire outlook. The swell direction (E) isn’t a perfect match for the optimum E direction listed for the break, so the shape might be a bit average, but that offshore wind makes it the best on offer by a long shot.

Saturday the 12th morning is a bit of a tease – glassy conditions with a 4ft easterly swell, but it’s only surfable, nothing special. The real surprise comes on Tuesday the 15th of September. The afternoon brings a 6ft swell from the east-northeast with a short 8-second period, but the combined energy is 1026 – that’s strong energy. The wind is a gentle cross-offshore, keeping it clean. This one has punch, but with that short period, it’ll be a bit lumpy and closing out on the beach. The size (6ft) puts it in the intermediate zone, but the inconsistency of the break might mean you’ll be waiting a while between sets.

Wednesday the 16th morning is another solid call: a 4ft groundswell from the south with a long 13-second period, combined energy of 708 (strong), and a light cross-offshore wind. That long period will give it some proper push, but for a beach break like this, it might be a bit too straight and lined up. Your best bet is to chase the offshore windows on Friday the 11th and Tuesday the 15th. The water temp is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual to report.

Rusty.

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