Isla Chepillo

Best Surf Season (August - November)

Isla Chepillo is a marginal, southwest-facing beach in the Gulf of Panama, and the wave climate here is dominated by small SSW swell rather than powerful open-ocean groundswell. The closest thing to a best surf season arrives late in the wet season, from August through November. Average wave heights climb to 0.4-0.5m (1.3-1.6ft), and the percentage of waves in the 0.5-1m (1.5-3.3ft) class jumps to 14-27%, with occasional 1-1.5m (3.3-5ft) pulses showing up in September, October and November. The swell direction is almost pure SSW, which is ideal for this southwest-facing coast. Winds are the trade-off, with onshore south winds becoming frequent, but this is still the most likely window of the year to find a rideable, groveling wave.