Baleal.

About

Baleal sits on a small rocky peninsula four kilometres north of Peniche, joined to the mainland by a sandy isthmus. The wave that anchors the area is the long sand beach on the north side of that isthmus: open to the Atlantic, multiple peaks, very consistent. Where Supertubos down the road sets the bar for power, Baleal sets the bar for accessibility. Every Peniche surf school runs lessons here on smaller days.

Baleal picks up swell from west through north-north-east, the prime line a north-west swell. Workable from 0.5 to 3 m on the buoy, periods of 8 seconds and up. Wind from the south-east is offshore; northerlies and north-westerlies blow it apart. All tides work, mid is usually the cleanest. Above 3 m the main bank closes out and surfers move round to the south side of the peninsula or down the coast.

Heavy with surf schools through summer; lighter October through March when the rentals empty. The wave is forgiving and the sand bottom shifts every storm, so banks come and go week to week. Don’t expect Supertubos-style barrels here, that’s not what it is. Watch for sand-covered rocks at the western end near the island, and for the Nortada that picks up most summer afternoons. Best sessions are autumn pulses on a falling barometer.