Arrieta Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, let’s have a look at the 16-day window for Arrieta. Straight up, I’m not gonna lie to you, it’s a rough stretch. The forecast is pretty much a write-off for anything worth paddling out for. We’ve got a solid 16 days of surf in the calendar, but the quality is just not there. The first recommendable action doesn’t even show up until the 18th of August, and even then it’s barely surfable.

Arrieta is a reef setup, and it’s inconsistent, so it takes a special alignment to fire. The whole period is dominated by a stubborn NNE wind, mostly cross or cross-off, which is just not doing us any favours. The swell is coming from the N and NNE, but the optimum direction for this spot is from the N. The water temp is sitting around 73° on the 15th, which is about average for the time of year, so no surprises there.

From the 15th through the 17th, it’s a total bust. The wind is howling at 16 mph, cross-shore, and the swell is short-period, around 7 seconds, with poor conditions. The combined energy is weak to moderate, hitting 311 early on, but it’s all messy. Forget about it.

On the 18th of August, Tuesday morning, we finally get a glimpse of something. The swell drops to 3 ft, still from the N, with a period of 8 seconds. The wind is N at 9 mph, cross-off, and the conditions are clean. The combined energy is just 141, which is weak. It’s described as “surfable waves but very ordinary conditions.” That’s the best we get, and it’s a score of 1 out of 10. It’s not a standout, but it’s the only window where you might get a few grovelly ones. The break is inconsistent, so don’t expect a party.

The rest of the week is a repetition of the same story: clean conditions but weak, short-period swell, or cross-shore winds churning it up. The 30th of August, Sunday morning, the swell jumps to 7 ft from the N, with a period of 8 seconds, and the combined energy rockets to 574, which is moderate to strong. But the wind is NNE at 22 mph, fresh cross-shore, creating a lumpy cross-chop. That’s too big for beginners at 7 ft and blown out, so it’s only for the experts who don’t mind a battle. The afternoon cleans up with cross-off wind, but the swell drops to 5 ft from the NNW. Still, the whole run is plagued by poor surf conditions.

Honestly, if you’re a kite surfer, you might have a better time with the strong winds and the lumpy conditions, especially around the 22nd and 30th. For a paddle surfer, there’s no true standout. The most promising is the morning of the 18th, but it’s a long shot. The rest is a waiting game. It tends not to stay this poor for long, so keep an eye on it, but for now, keep your board in the bag.

Rusty.

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