Ritoque Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let’s break down what’s cooking in the water for the next couple of weeks.

The overall picture is a bit up and down, but we’ve got a couple of clear winners. The surf starts to show up on Sunday afternoon, and the real sweet spot is the Monday the 28th into Tuesday the 29th. That’s the time to clear your schedule.

We open on Sunday the 26th at Ritoque with a small clean swell. The water temp is 56°, which is about normal for the season. You’ve got a 0.7m SW groundswell with a very long 17-second period, and the combined energy is moderate (643). The wind is glassy, dead flat. That’s a big plus. The spot is fairly consistent and can get crowded sometimes, so plan for that. It’s a gentle start.

Monday the 27th brings a bigger 1.6m W swell, but the period drops to 10 seconds, and the wind is crossing from the NNW. It’s a bit rough. The afternoon gets bigger at 1.8m, but the wind turns cross-on, so the quality is marginal. The energy jumps to 1441, but it’s not the cleanest.

Now for the highlight. Tuesday the 28th is the one. The morning delivers a 2.4m WSW groundswell with a 12-second period and a strong combined energy of 1641. The wind is glassy, absolutely calm. This is excellent surf, but at 2.4m, it’s for experienced surfers only. The afternoon stays glassy with a 2.1m swell and 11-second period. This is your best window – if you’re comfortable in solid waves, don’t miss it.

Wednesday the 29th is a bit smaller but still clean. Morning has a 1.3m WSW swell (12 seconds) with glassy wind and energy of 606. The afternoon is similar with 1.2m swell. Both are rated as “very good” to “good.” A great option for the intermediate crowd.

From Thursday the 30th, things get smaller and wind-affected. The morning of Friday the 31st has a big 2.4m WNW swell, but there’s heavy rain and a strong 35 km/h crosswind. That’s more of a kite-surfing day. The afternoon does clean up with a nice offshore wind from the East, dropping the swell to 1.8m – worth a look.

The first week of August (1st to 4th) has some moderate swell, around 1.8m to 2.4m, but the wind is often cross or cross-on, keeping the quality marginal. The morning of Tuesday the 4th has a solid 2.4m WSW swell (13 seconds) with energy of 2052, but the wind is cross-shore, so it’s not perfect.

From the 5th of August through to the 10th, the swell hangs around 1.4m to 1.8m, but the wind is consistently cross-on or cross-shore, with reports of “marginal” or “poor” conditions. The afternoons are particularly choppy. It’s a long stretch of so-so surf.

So, the bottom line: Tuesday the 28th is the standout. Glassy wind, solid 2.4m groundswell, and excellent conditions. If that’s too heavy, Wednesday the 29th is your next best bet with clean, smaller waves. The rest of the window is a battle with the breeze.

Rusty.

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