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There’s a lot to live up to when a break is called Supertubes, or Supertubos. A name like Supertubos should be earned. And this famed spot in the fishing village of Peniche, Portugal has earned its moniker over decades of pleasing Europeans and world-traveling surfers before it was unveiled to the masses during the 2010 Rip Curl Search event.
Supertubos isn’t your average beachbreak down the street — its open swell window to the powerful storms raging across the North Atlantic, protection from northerly winds that often plague the coast, and unique bathymetry all come together to make Supertubos one of the best beachbreaks in the world.
Swell Sources
· Strongest swells from October to April when intense mid-latitude frontal lows track eastward across the northern Atlantic, interacting with adjacent high pressure. Swells are often consistent, range from short to long period, and take one to five days to arrive. The more southerly the storm track, the more swell energy for Supertubos.
Check: Supertubos Spot Forecast
· Hurricane season runs June 1st – November 30th, peak season mid-August through mid-October and can offer a range of westerly swells. Recurving tropical cyclones undergo extratropical transition (highest probability is October) and can enhance winter storms in northern Atlantic, delivering swells from short to long period. These systems occasionally impact the region with wind and weather (like Leslie, October 2018).
· Local windswell events do occur, however, these events are often not as strong or preferred to the above mentioned swell sources.
Swell Window
· Supertubos swell window is technically open from WNW (295°) to SSW (191°). Most of the swell arrives from the West to NW with storms tracking favorably toward Europe, maximizing swell energy.
· Shadowing increases north of 295° due to the Peniche Peninsula and offshore islands. A fraction of NW angled swells wraps into the break – the bigger and the longer the period of the swell, the more energy that wraps in.
View: Zona Oeste, Portugal Regional Forecast
· Southerly swells are heavily shadowed to completely blocked south of 191°.
· SSW-SW swells are usually prefrontal windswell events, coinciding with unfavorable onshore South-SW wind. After front passes, wind can clock around to more favorable North-NE direction, cleaning up the surf.
Bathymetry
Bathymetry plays a vital role in how waves behave when approaching and breaking along the coast, refracting energy into or away from different locations with each variation in the swell direction and period. Carved out by an ancient river in a time when sea levels were much lower, a large deepwater canyon (the Nazaré Canyon) cuts through the continental shelf to the north and west of Peniche. This canyon snakes all the way to the town of Nazaré, about 21 miles north of Peniche, where it significantly affects the local waves (especially during large swells).
A branch of the Nazaré Canyon juts out to the southeast toward Peniche. This canyon branch is coupled with an underwater ridge (topped with a few islands) that extends northwest from Peniche out to the Nazaré Canyon. This canyon/ridge relationship helps refract inbound swells toward Peniche and Supertubos.
Much of the energy of longer period (over 16 seconds) and more NW-angled swells is refracted into the offshore islands or to areas further north and south. This can leave Supertubos in a swell “void” with smaller waves — this can be a good trait on large NW swells. The canyon benefits the Supertubes area on west to southwest swells, enhancing swell energy 1.5-2.0 (or more) times the original offshore swell height on longer period swells over 16 seconds.
Watch: Live Supertubos via Cam
A sandbar extends about half a mile offshore from the Supertubos arena with a drop off to a deep trough on the south side of this sandbar. When swells approach, they refract and turn up coast from the southern side of the ledge and cross up against the grain of the original swell direction approaching more straight on. This convergence and focusing of swell energy into one common zone amplifies the breaking surf height and helps create powerful, bowly, barreling peaks that gives Supertubos its name.
Wind
· Supertubos prefers a calm to light offshore wind (ENE is straight offshore). North winds whip around the backside of the peninsula and blow offshore. SE wind also blows offshore but turns sideshore as it veers more southerly, staying manageable if not too strong (and good air wind on rights). Onshore wind from SSW to WNW produces less than ideal conditions.
See: Official Forecast 2018 Meo Rip Curl Pro Portugal
· During NW wind events, conditions are cleanest near the jetty (Molhe Leste) with surface texture/bump gradually increasing as you move southward. Northerly wind cleans up the bay as the wind wraps to blow more from the eastside of the peninsula.
· Located in southern Europe, Supertubos often avoids the more severe winter weather but lower-latitude tracking storms can bring poor wind/weather. Systems tracking higher in latitude or ones that lift northward can provide good swell with less adverse weather. Approaching fronts bring unfavorable southerly wind and stormy conditions to the region. As high pressure builds in behind these fronts, wind can clock offshore, improving weather conditions and clearing skies.
· Supertubos can handle light onshore winds (under 10kts) with the close-to-shore beachbreak setup.
Best Conditions for Supertubos
Best Tide: Mid to high, preferably incoming
Best Swell Direction: West
Best Swell Period: All periods can deliver good surf
Best Wind: Calm or light to moderate offshore (ENE is straight offshore)
Best Size: Chest high to double overhead
Best Season: Fall, winter, spring
Resources for Surpertubos
Zona Oeste, Portugal Regional Forecast
Peniche High Res Wind Forecast