Zippers-Costa Azul Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, with the outlook for Zippers-Costa Azul. This is a solid beach and reef setup, exposed to the south swell, so it’s a bit of a magnet for whatever comes our way.

The coming weeks are a real mixed bag. We’ve got pulses of swell, but the wind is going to be a constant battle. It’s not all bad news, though – there are a couple of windows where everything lines up right.

We start off quiet on Thursday, July 23rd. The morning has a tiny 2ft SW groundswell, with a super long 13-second period, but the onshore ESE wind is a bummer. The energy is weak (322). By the afternoon, the swell bumps up to 3ft from the SW, but the period drops to 9 seconds. It’s clean with a light cross-offshore wind, but the energy is just moderate (402). It’s a marginal session.

Friday, July 24th, morning is a write-off with a tiny 2ft swell and cross-on wind. Wait for the afternoon. That’s the first real standout. The swell jumps to 4ft from the SW, and more importantly, the wind swings to a clean cross-offshore from the WSW. The energy is building into the strong range (1313). It’ll be a bit lined up and clean.

Saturday, July 25th, is a bit of a gamble. The swell builds nicely – 4ft in the morning, peaking at 6ft in the afternoon from the SSW, with a long 19 to 20-second period. The energy is strong (1337, 2111). The problem is the risk of thunderstorms. The wind is cross-offshore in the afternoon, so if you dodge the storms, it could be excellent. This is more for the experienced crew; 6ft on a long period is a lot of power.

Sunday, July 26th, stays solid at 5ft from the SSW, but the wind goes cross-shore and then gets a bit of chop. The energy is still strong (1502, 1644), but the surface isn’t as clean as Friday.

The start of the next week sees the swell holding over 5ft, but the wind turns onshore, making it choppy. Not great.

The real heavy stuff shows up around Tuesday, July 29th. We’re looking at a 10ft SSW swell, with very strong energy (3557). But the wind is a strong onshore, creating a mess. Don’t even think about Wednesday afternoon, July 30th – the wind is howling onshore and the conditions are poor. This setup is looking more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing, honestly.

The swell drops back to 7ft on Friday, August 1st, and the wind goes clean, cross-offshore from the west. That’s another good window.

The best bet of the whole run, though, is Saturday, August 2nd. The swell has dropped to a manageable 4ft from the WSW, with moderate energy (641). The wind is a clean, moderate offshore from the WNW, giving you a smooth face. The crowd profile at Zippers is "often," so expect a few others to have the same idea.

The run ends on a quiet note. Sunday, August 3rd, is glassy in the afternoon with a tiny 3ft swell, but it’s a fun cleanup set. Then we hit a dry spell from Monday, August 4th, all the way through to Friday, August 8th. The wind is a mess, mostly onshore, and the swell is weak and short-period. It’s a proper flat spell for this spot.

To sum it up, your best bets are Friday afternoon, July 24th, and Saturday afternoon, August 2nd, with the offshore wind. The big swell around the 29th is a miss due to the wind.

Rusty.

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