Praia das Macas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, grab your coffee and listen up. Rusty here.

Just a heads-up: we’re looking at a pretty bleak run of surf at Praia das Macas for the next couple of weeks. The opening stretch is a write-off. There’s a gap of almost two weeks where the conditions are just no good—cross-onshore winds, weak swell, and all-round poor quality. The first real flicker of hope doesn’t show until Thursday the 24th of July. Don’t hold your breath just yet though.

Let’s walk through it. Thursday and Friday the 9th and 10th of July are a no-go: light swells around 2ft to 3ft from the WNW, and cross-onshore winds up to 15 mph making it choppy. The combined swell energy is weak, sitting between 73 and 167 (moderate). The water temp is 67°, which is about average for the time of year.

The weekend and the following week are flat or unrideable. Swells stay tiny, often under 3ft, and the wind doesn’t cooperate. Saturday the 12th of July morning shows a brief moment of glassy conditions with a 3ft WNW swell (combined energy of 163), but the forecast says “very ordinary conditions” so don’t get excited. That’s the closest we get to a wave for a long time.

As we push into the second week, from the 13th to the 22nd of July, the swell builds a bit—up to 6ft by Wednesday the 22nd—but it’s all cross-onshore with winds blowing 18 to 28 mph. The combined energy climbs to 317 (moderate), but with those winds and messy conditions, it’s a skip.

Now, here’s the only standout. Thursday the 24th of July morning: the stars align. The swell hits 8ft from the NNW at a 9-second period, with a combined energy of 805 (strong). The wind is *cross-offshore* at 9 mph from the ENE. That means clean, groomed faces. For the first and only time in this outlook, the forecast says “expect very good surf conditions.” This is the one. Big swell though—over 8ft? No, it’s 8ft, which is still punchy and best left to experienced surfers. It’s a Thursday, so crowds are a possibility (listed as sometimes). But for those who can handle it, this is the session to target.

After that, Friday the 25th of July afternoon turns nasty again with strong onshore winds and a drop-off in quality. So, honestly, you’re looking at one sharp morning of surf across the whole 16 days. It’s not a great run, but that Thursday morning might just be worth the wait.

Rusty.

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