Praia Cardoso Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, it’s your local surf reporter Rusty here. Let’s get into it.

We’re lookin’ at a 16-day window, but I gotta be straight with you – the first week or so is pretty flat and ordinary. There’s a glimmer of hope later on, but you’ll be waitin’ a while for anything decent.

The first real opportunity is Monday morning, July 27th, at Praia Cardoso. We’ve got a small but clean 2 ft swell from the south, with a period of 12 seconds, so it’s a proper groundswell with some shape. The wind is glassy – WNW at 3 mph – which is a dream for clean conditions. The water’s at 65°, which is pretty much normal for this time of year. The combined energy is moderate at 234, so there’s a bit of push. It’s a beginner-friendly spot, fairly consistent, and it’s exposed to the south swell that’s coming in. The optimum swell direction is from the south, so this is a good match. Keep in mind, it’s a small wave, so don’t expect barrels, but for a longboard or a funboard, it’s a nice little session. Crowds are possible here, so you might have to share.

After that morning, the wind turns onshore, and the surf drops off again. We’ve got a long stretch of poor-to-marginal days from the afternoon of the 27th right through to the end of the first week. Tuesday the 28th is messy with cross-on winds, Wednesday the 29th has rain showers and a light cross-on wind, and the swell stays tiny. Thursday the 30th is glassy in the morning but the swell is weak – only 2 ft and short period. Basically, the whole first week is a write-off. There’s a gap of several days with no real recommendations.

Moving into the second week, things start to look a little more promising. On Monday morning, August 4th, we get a tiny bump: 2 ft from the south, period of 11 seconds, with light offshore NE wind at 3 mph. The combined energy is moderate at 132. It’s clean, but still small – surfable if you’re desperate, but not a standout.

The real standout comes on Friday, August 7th. The morning sees a solid 5 ft south swell, period of 10 seconds, with a clean cross-offshore wind from the NNE at 6 mph. The combined energy jumps to a strong 487, so there’s some serious power. This is a wave that’ll be a lot of fun for intermediate and above. The swell direction is south, which matches the optimum for Praia Cardoso. By the afternoon, the swell builds to 5 ft from the south, period lengthening to 13 seconds, and the energy ramps up to 839 – that’s a proper, strong groundswell. The wind is still cross-offshore from the NE at 12 mph, so conditions will be clean. This is the best of the whole forecast. If you can get out there Friday morning or afternoon, that’s the call. The waves might be a bit much for beginners at 5 ft, and by the afternoon at 5 ft, it’s definitely for the more experienced crew. The long period means it’ll have good shape and energy, but at a beach break it might be a bit straight – still, for a point or reef, it’d be unreal.

After Friday, the swell drops back down. Saturday the 8th and Sunday the 9th are clean but small, and the wind picks up again. The rest of the window is pretty quiet, with tiny waves and poor conditions.

So, to sum it up: the first week is a bust. The second week builds to a solid Friday the 7th, with clean, powerful south swell. That’s your one to circle. The rest? Not much to write home about.

Rusty.

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