Rio Chico Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the menu for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – the outlook for Rio Chico over the next 16 days is a tough one. We're looking at a long stretch of marginal to poor conditions, with a whole lot of waiting around. The first real chance to get wet doesn't kick off until Sunday the 5th of July, and even then, it's a bit of a gamble. The water is a full 79°, which is a whopping 7° warmer than normal for this time of year – that's very unusual, you'll feel that!

The first window of opportunity is Sunday afternoon. Rio Chico, that classic point break, is going to see a long-period SW groundswell coming in at 3ft but with a period of 16 seconds. That's got some serious energy behind it, with a combined energy of 608 – it's a moderate, solid push. The wind is light and offshore out of the west, so it'll be clean. However, the forecast is only giving it a 1 out of 10, calling it "marginal" with questionable tide. It's a spot that's very consistent, so there will be waves, but don't expect magic. The crowd situation is "sometimes" so you might have company.

The swell builds a touch on Monday the 6th, with the morning seeing 3ft from the SW, period 19 seconds – that's very long period, groundswell. The energy is up to 759. But the wind swings cross-onshore, and the conditions are still called marginal. The same story continues into Tuesday the 7th with 4ft swells, but the wind is messy. Honestly, the first few days look like a real struggle to find anything clean.

After that, from Wednesday the 8th of July right through to the end of the run on Monday the 20th, it's a desert. The forecast is littered with "poor surf conditions" and scores of 0 out of 10. The swell consistently sits between 2ft and 3ft, but the wind is a persistent cross-onshore or onshore breeze, making it choppy and messy. The combined energy value drops significantly, bottoming out at 154 on the 20th. For a spot that's usually very consistent, this is a surprisingly blank run. Honestly, it's more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing with that onshore wind and small swell.

So, the only stand-out, if you can call it that, is that first Sunday afternoon (5th July) with the clean offshore wind and long-period groundswell. It's not big, but it's the cleanest and most promising the whole forecast period gets. Be patient, and keep an eye on the forecasts, because it tends not to stay this poor for long.

Rusty.

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