Praia de Garopaba Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here, and I’ve been staring at the charts for Praia de Garopaba. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, but there’s some real gems hiding in there if you’re patient.

Right now, the water’s sitting at 67°F which is pretty much spot on for this time of year, so no surprises there.

The forecast kicks off with a real weak start. Thursday the 6th has a tiny 2ft ENE swell at 7 seconds, and the wave energy is only 120 (weak). It’s glassy in the morning but the swell is so small it’s barely worth paddling out for. The afternoon turns into a cross-on mess with 10 km/h winds, so I’d give it a miss.

Friday the 7th looks a bit better. The morning brings a clean 3ft ENE swell with moderate offshore winds from the south at 20 km/h. It’t surfable but nothing to write home about. The afternoon ramps up to 5ft from the south, still offshore, and the energy jumps to 390 (moderate). The swell period is only 8 seconds, so it’s a bit short and lumpy, but the clean conditions make it a decent session for the more experienced.

Saturday the 8th is a write-off. A 7ft SSE swell with 14-second period sounds good on paper, and the energy is huge at 1779 (strong), but it’s onshore all day with 20 km/h winds and rain. That’s a choppy, blown-out mess. Best stay home.

Sunday the 9th is where things start to get interesting. The morning has 6ft from the south, offshore at 25 km/h, and the energy is 825 (moderate). It’s clean but the wind is strong. Then the afternoon… wow. 8ft from the south, 11-second period, offshore at 20 km/h, and the energy is 2106 (very strong). The conditions are clean and powerful. This is the standout of the first week – excellent for experienced surfers only, as 8ft is getting into big-wave territory. Don’t take a beginner out here.

Monday the 10th and Tuesday the 11th keep the swell going with 6ft to 7ft from the SSE, clean conditions with cross-offshore winds, and energy levels around 1000 to 2500. It’s all solid, surfable, and consistent. The crowd factor is “sometimes” at this break, so you might have company, but it’s not a circus.

Wednesday the 12th and Thursday the 13th see the swell drop back to 4ft to 6ft, but the wind turns onshore and there’s light rain. Thursday the 13th afternoon does have a glassy moment with 4ft SSE swell, but it’s small. Not worth a special trip.

Now, the real highlight of the whole forecast is Friday the 14th. The morning session has 6ft from the SSE with a juicy 14-second period, cross-offshore winds at 15 km/h, and energy at 1323 (strong). This is long-period groundswell, and it’s going to peel beautifully at this exposed beach break. The conditions are clean and powerful. This is the best on offer – mark it on your calendar.

After that, it fades a bit. Saturday the 15th and Sunday the 16th are full of light rain and onshore/cross-on winds, with messy, choppy waves. The swell is 4ft to 6ft but the wind kills it. Not worth it.

Monday the 17th is a write-off again. 10ft from the east with 35 km/h onshore winds – that’s a washing machine. Only for the crazies, and even then, it’s dangerous.

Tuesday the 18th drops to 8ft but still onshore. Still messy.

Then we get one more beautiful moment. Wednesday the 19th morning is glassy, with 5ft from the east, 10-second period, and energy at 871 (moderate). The wind is calm, glassy conditions. It’s a lovely, clean session for anyone.

And finally, Thursday the 20th morning has 5ft from the south, 14-second period, light cross-offshore winds, and energy at 1133 (strong). Another excellent session for experienced surfers to end the run.

So, to wrap it up: the best surf is Sunday afternoon the 9th, Friday the 14th morning, and Thursday the 20th morning. Those are your standouts. Thursday the 20th morning is a bit far out, so keep an eye on it, but it looks promising. The rest is either too small, too windy, or too big and messy. There’s a gap from the 15th to the 18th where it’s all poor, so don’t bother. The swell is short-period (under 8 seconds) on a few days, which means it’s more for the beach break than any point, but the longer-period swells (11-14 seconds) are the ones you want. The beach break can get a bit straight with those long-period ones, but the energy is there.

Stay safe, and don’t be a hero out there if it’s too big. Rusty.

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