Arrieta Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, I’m Rusty, and I’ve been watching the charts for your local Arrieta spot. Honestly, this 16-day stretch is a rough one for Arrieta. The water’s at 24°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least it’s comfortable for a paddle.

From the start, we’ve got a long gap of poor surf. From Wednesday 19th August all the way through to Sunday 30th August, the swell is small, short-period, and the wind is a persistent cross or cross-offshore breeze that never really cleans it up. The energy is weak to moderate – the combined swell energy is only around 146 to 281 in the first week, so nothing with any punch. On Sunday 23rd, there’s a slight bump in period to 10 seconds, but the swell is only 3 ft, and the cross-shore wind creates chop, so it’s still not worth paddling out for.

The tide turns a bit around Monday 24th, when the swell direction shifts to NNW and the period stretches to 11 seconds, with the combined energy jumping to 733 – that’s moderate. But the wind is still cross-shore, and the wave comment says poor conditions. It’s a tease.

The real action comes in the second week. From Thursday 27th August, the swell gets bigger, but it’s still messy. On Thursday 27th, swell hits 8 ft to 8 ft from the NNE, with period around 7–8 seconds, and combined energy at 604 to 879 – that’s moderate to strong. But the wind is a fresh cross-shore at 22 mph, making it lumpy. This is expert territory size-wise, but the conditions are poor.

The standout is Monday 31st August. We’ve got an 8 ft swell from the north, with a 9-second period, and the combined energy is a strong 1112. The wind is a cross-offshore breeze at 12 mph, which is the cleanest we’ve seen. The wave comment says marginal, but this is the closest to decent surf in the whole 16 days. The swell is big, so it’s for experienced surfers only, and the wind should keep the face fairly tidy. Compared to the rest of the run, this is your best shot.

The next day, Tuesday 1st September, also shows an 8 ft swell from the NNE with cross-offshore wind, but the combo is similar. After that, it drops back to poor conditions.

In short, Arrieta is mostly flat or messy until the end of the month. The only real window is 31st August and maybe 1st September, when the north swell arrives with cleaner wind. It’s not a classic, but it’s the only time the stars align.

Rusty

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