Ribanceira Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, let’s have a proper look at what’s on the cards for Ribanceira over the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, the outlook starts off pretty bleak. We’re looking at a long stretch of nothing much to get excited about from Saturday the 18th through to Thursday the 23rd. The surf is tiny – mostly around 0.7 ft to 1.0 ft – and the winds are messy from the NNE or NNW, making it choppy. There’s a quick moment on Monday morning the 20th where it goes glassy, but the swell is only 0.7 ft with weak energy (11), so it’s not worth paddling out for.

The first real sign of life shows up on Tuesday the 21st, late. Tuesday afternoon brings a clean, glassy 2 ft from the S with 10-second period, and the water is sitting at a seriously chilly 61°, which is about 5° below average for this time of year – that’s *much* colder than normal, so you’ll want a thick suit for this stretch.

Wednesday the 22nd and Thursday the 23rd bump up a little in size, with Wednesday afternoon seeing 3 ft from the S and Thursday morning hitting 6 ft from the WSW, but the period stays short at 8 seconds. The winds are workable – clean or offshore – but the energy readings (115 to 395) are only moderate, and the quality is still very ordinary. Not a standout, but the most surfable window so far.

Friday the 24th morning is glassy with 5 ft from the SSE, but again, short period. It’s clean but small and weak for how much swell there is.

Now we get to the decent part. From Saturday the 25th through to Monday the 27th, things smooth out. Saturday afternoon the 25th goes glassy with 2 ft from the S, period 11 seconds, delivering moderate energy (124). Sunday the 26th morning is offshore with 2 ft from the S, period 11 seconds, and clean conditions. Monday the 27th morning brings a 2 ft swell from the S, period 12 seconds, with clean faces and energy at 136. These are small but clean windows for a log or a funboard.

The true highlight of the forecast, though, comes on Saturday the 1st of August. This is over a week away, so don’t lock it in just yet, but the potential is there. Saturday morning is glassy with 8 ft of E swell, period 8 seconds, and the combined energy rockets up to 1697 – that’s very strong. That size is too much for beginners and getting into expert territory for a sandbar break like Ribanceira, especially with that short period. Still, with glassy conditions and that much juice, it could be a wild session for the crew who know what they’re doing.

Before that, Thursday the 30th of July morning also looks tidy – 4 ft from the E with 10-second period, offshore wind from the SSW, and energy at 333. Clean, growly, and consistent. A solid pick for the advanced crew.

Overall, the first week is a write-off. Then we get a few small but clean days around the 25th to 27th, and the real pay-off is that Saturday August 1st morning – if the wind holds, it could be the best we see all month.

Stay patient, keep an eye on the glassy mornings, and don’t sleep on that August 1st early session.

Rusty.

Read more