Praia das Macas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get straight into it. The next 16 days at Praia das Macas are a real mixed bag. We’ve got a persistent run of cross-onshore winds that’s going to mess up a lot of the surf, but there’s a very narrow window where conditions line up just right. The water temperature is 71°, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprise there.

The first few days are a write-off. Wednesday the 12th through to Saturday the 15th of August, the wind is cross-onshore and building, with swell height climbing from 3 ft up to 8 ft. The combined energy starts at 173 and rockets to 985, but the wind makes it messy and poor. Definitely not worth paddling out.

Sunday the 16th, the swell sticks around 8 ft to 8 ft, with a strong 1117 energy reading on the morning, but the wind is still cross-onshore and choppy. The morning is a “marginal” call, but it’s not clean enough.

Now, here’s the standout. On Monday the 17th of August, we get a clear winner. The morning is glassy – ENE wind at 3 mph, dead offshore. The swell is a solid 8 ft from the NNW with a 9-second period, and the combined energy is 879. This is the best window in the whole outlook. The break is a consistent, exposed beach, so that 8 ft swell will be powerful. It’s a bit on the bigger side for beginners, but for intermediate and above, it’s going to be a great session. Keep in mind this spot is exposed to the NW, and the swell direction is NNW, which is a good match. The afternoon starts to get onshore and messy, so get in early.

After that, the wind turns cross-onshore again from Tuesday the 18th through to the end of the outlook. The swell drops to 5 ft to 6 ft, then builds back up to well over 8 ft by the 22nd and 23rd, with energy readings hitting 1707. But the cross-onshore wind and choppy conditions are a consistent theme. From the 20th of August onwards, the wind is fresh to strong, and the surf is all cross-onshore and messy. The last few days, the 24th to the 27th, are more of the same – poor with onshore wind and lumpy conditions. There’s a long gap of poor surf from the 18th until the end of the forecast period. Honestly, from the 20th onward, the swell is big but the wind is so cross-onshore at a beach break that it might be more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The only real standout is Monday morning, the 17th of August. That’s the one to circle. For the rest of the 16 days, it’s a tough run.

Rusty.

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