Coxos is the reason the reserve exists. A right over reef that holds size and keeps its shape, and the break most people mean when they say Ericeira is the best stretch of coast in Europe.
It takes a north-north-westerly swell with a south-easterly offshore. October is its best month and even then the wind wins more often than not: nine clean days out of thirty, sixteen blown out, five too small.
Two things compound here. The current, which comes from the seabed, and the crowd, which does not. A busy reef with a strong current is where a surfer out of their depth stops being able to choose where they are. Ribeira d'Ilhas is ten minutes south and asks less: that is where you go to meet a reef, not here.
Spot sheet
- Level
- Advanced, Expert
- Wave
- Right
- Bottom
- Reef
- Water
- 14 – 18 °C
- Wetsuit
- 4/3 mm + boots → 4/3 mm
- Swell window
- NW – N
- Ideal wind
- SE
- How often it works
- Consistent
- Crowd
- ●●●●●
- Danger
- ●●●●○
A month in figures
In October, the month the forecast guides single out for this coast:
Shares of the month, from the published forecast statistics. The model reads a grid, so neighbouring breaks share a figure: this describes a stretch of coast, not this wave on its own. The other eleven months are not published.
What to watch for
- Rips and undertow
- Localism
Technical figures read off published surf guides. Where two disagree, the sheet says so.