Praia das Macas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s happening at Praia das Macas over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be honest with you – it’s a tough stretch. The water is sitting at 68°F, which is a touch cooler than usual for this time of year, but nothing too crazy. The real problem is the wind. We’ve got a solid run of onshore and cross-onshore winds from the west and north that are just chopping things up. The swell energy is weak to moderate during this period, ranging from 217 to 1313, but that doesn’t matter much when the wind is ruining the surface.

The only window that even looks remotely worth a paddle is the morning of Friday, August 28th. We’ve got a 7ft swell from the WNW, with a longer period of 11 seconds – that’s a proper groundswell with some shape to it. The wind is light, almost glassy from the WNW at just 3 mph, so the surface should be clean. The combined energy is strong at 1134, so there’s some punch. This is a standout for the whole forecast, but it’s short-lived – by the afternoon the wind swings cross-onshore and it’s game over.

After that, it’s a long, bleak run. From Saturday the 29th through to Monday the 7th of September, every session is plagued by moderate to strong cross-onshore winds from the north and NNW, with swell mostly in the 3ft to 7ft range but period dropping to 8-9 seconds. The energy levels hang around the 200 to 600 range – weak to moderate – but with the wind on it, it’s just messy. There’s a glimmer on the 5th, 6th, and 7th of September mornings when the wind drops to glassy, but the swell is tiny – 2ft to 3ft – and the energy is weak (143 to 194). You could get a fun little wave if you’re desperate, but it’s not worth getting excited about.

Then, on the 10th of September – Thursday morning – we see a big jump in swell: 12ft from the NNW, with a moderate period of 10 seconds and a massive energy reading of 2274. That is a lot of water moving. But the wind is still a fresh cross-onshore at 22 mph, so it’s going to be a lumpy, choppy mess. For experts only, and even then, it’s more about the raw power than any sort of quality. Not really a surfable day for most.

So, bottom line: the only real shot you’ve got over the next 16 days is the morning of Friday, August 28th. Get it while it’s clean. After that, you’re waiting almost two weeks for a window that never really opens.

Rusty.

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