Praia das Macas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it.

Look, the start of this window is a bit of a write-off. We’re looking at a few days of small, chopped-up surf with moderate cross-onshore winds. Not the kind of conditions that get you out of bed early. The energy is weak, and the swell direction is all over the shop. It’s going to be a patience game for the first part of the week.

Come Sunday the 16th, things start to turn. The wind drops right out for the morning, leaving it glassy. We’ve got a clean 4ft of NW swell rolling in. It’s not huge, but it’s clean, and that’s a big win after the slop we’ve been looking at. The swell energy is a decent 333, which is moderate. This is a good one to dust off the board for.

Then Monday the 17th and Tuesday the 18th keep that promise going. We’ve got light cross-offshore winds in the morning and clean conditions. The swell is up to 6ft on Monday and 5ft on Tuesday, both from the NNW. The energy is up there too, with values of 381 and 301. These are your standout mornings – clean, workable waves, and the right direction. It’s still a bit small for the experts, but for the average surfer, it’s prime.

The real standout in this whole stretch looks like Thursday the 20th through Friday the 21st. The wind is forecast to swing offshore or cross-offshore, cleaning things right up. The swell is solid, building from 6ft on Thursday morning to a peak of 6ft by Friday. The energy numbers are massive – 418 on Thursday morning, jumping to a huge 874 by Friday morning and nearly 1000 by Friday afternoon. This is strong, powerful swell. The period is 8-10 seconds, so it’s a nice mix of push and shape. Just be aware that 6ft is getting into the range where it’s more for intermediate to advanced surfers. The break is a beach, so that longer-period groundswell might break a bit straight, but the size and the clean winds make it the pick of the fortnight.

After that, the swell backs off pretty quickly into the weekend. The 22nd has some clean morning waves but the energy has dropped. By the 23rd, it’s fading out again with a risk of thunderstorms. The good stuff is definitely Thursday and Friday of next week.

Praia das Macas is the spot to watch. It’s a consistent beach break that’s exposed to that NW swell. It can get crowded, so get in early for those clean windows. The water is sitting at 69°, which is pretty normal for this time of year, so you won’t need the thickest suit.

So, to sum it up: don’t bother for the first few days. The standout run is the 16th and 17th for some clean, smaller waves, but the real swell arrives on the 20th and 21st. That’s the one to plan for.

Rusty.

Read more