July is deep in the southern swell season. The Southern Ocean is at full output eight thousand kilometres away, the pulses arrive with long periods, and the sand bottom at Puerto Escondido takes them in deep water and throws the whole thing up at once.
The country page puts it plainly and it is worth repeating on the month that earns it: this is not a place to progress. Zicatela in July is an experts' wave in a region full of approachable ones, and the classic mistake is booking the town because of the name and finding the beach unusable for the entire week. Nothing about the wave is gradual, and the currents that come with a big July swell are the reason the town has lifeguards on that stretch.
The water hits 30°C on both coasts this month, the one time of year the north and the south read the same. Boardshorts everywhere, and that is the last simple thing about July here.
