San Juan Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s happening at San Juan.

Look, I gotta be straight with you. The next 16 days are pretty grim. It’s a long stretch of poor surf, with only a whisper of a chance right at the tail end, and even that is a tough sell. For the most part, the wind is howling onshore from the north-northeast, blowing out what little swell there is. The energy is weak, mostly in the range of 120 to 575 (moderate at best), and the swell is short-period wind chop—nothing with any real grunt.

For the first week, from Wednesday the 2nd right through to about Sunday the 13th, it’s a write-off. Onshore winds, 9 to 22 mph, and messy, short-period swell. The water temp is a touch warmer than normal at 75°, but you won’t be in the water long enough to enjoy it. There’s a small window around Monday the 14th morning where the period jumps to 14 seconds and the energy hits 262, but the swell is tiny, only 2 ft from the northwest, and the wind is still cross-onshore. It’s a marginal call at best.

Then, into the second week, things get interesting but not for paddle surfing. On Tuesday the 15th, we see a big spike in energy from a long-period groundswell—772 in the morning, 846 in the afternoon, with a period of 15 seconds from the NNW. The swell is 4 ft to 5 ft, which is solid. But, the wind is still cross-onshore or onshore, and up to 16 mph. This is a beach setup, and with that much wind and a long-period swell breaking straight, it’s going to be a mess for a surfboard. Honestly, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The best you can say is that on Saturday the 12th morning, the wind drops to a light breeze from the north-northeast (6 mph) and the swell is 4 ft from the north with 8 seconds. Still, the wave comment says "poor surf conditions" and the energy is low at 202. It’s flat, but clean. Not worth paddling out for.

So, there’s nothing here worth highlighting. A long, blank run like this is normal for the area when the trade winds lock in. Forecasts can change, but right now, I’d leave the boards at home.

- Rusty

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