Viana do Castelo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for the next couple of weeks. The focus is on the river mouth at Viana do Castelo.

First thing to mention – the water is sitting at 67°, which is about average for this time of year. Nothing unusual there.

The next 16 days start off with a bit of a slow burn. There’s no real action on Friday the 14th – the morning has tiny, ordinary 3ft waves from the WNW with a period of 9 seconds, and the wind is cross-off, but it’s just not enough to get excited about. The afternoon gets blown out by a 12 mph cross-off breeze. The wave energy is weak, only 143 and 113. Saturday the 15th is where things start to look more interesting. The morning sees a jump in size to 6ft from the NW, with a short period of 8 seconds, and the wind is cross-off. The energy is moderate at 418. The afternoon gets even bigger, hitting 8ft from the NNW, but the wind picks up to 19 mph. The energy is strong at 644. This is the standout of the first week. The swell is a bit much for beginners, but for those with some experience, Saturday afternoon offers the best waves. Sunday the 16th morning is glassy with 4ft from the NNW, but it’s ordinary. After that, it drops off into a real flat spell. From Sunday afternoon all the way through to Thursday the 21st, the surf is mostly poor or very ordinary, with heights under 3ft and weak energy. There’s a gap of a few days with nothing worth chasing.

Then on Friday the 21st morning, we get a 4ft swell from the NNW with a 7-second period, cross-off wind, and moderate energy at 228, but it’s a marginal call. The afternoon gets messy with strong wind. Saturday the 22nd and Sunday the 23rd are a write-off with small, onshore slop.

Now, looking further out, the second week looks like a tease. There’s a massive pulse of swell arriving on Friday the 28th of August. The morning brings 8ft from the NW with a period of 11 seconds, cross-off wind, and very strong energy at 1256. The afternoon is even bigger, 8ft from the NW with a 12-second period, and energy at 1701. This is the other standout, but it’s a long way off. The swell is only for experts, and the long period (groundswell) means it will be powerful and walled up on the river mouth. Saturday the 29th stays huge, with 10ft in the morning and 8ft in the afternoon, both from the NW with a 13-second period and energy over 2400. This is serious, heavy stuff. Keep in mind, this is a long-range forecast, so it’s promising but not a sure thing.

Rusty.

Read more