Arrieta Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here, checking out the Arrieta stretch for the next sixteen days.

The water’s sitting about 74°F, which is a touch toastier than normal for this time of year. You won’t need a thick wetsuit, that’s for sure.

For the first week, it’s pretty bleak. We’ve got a solid Northerly breeze howling, mostly cross or cross-off, but the swell has no soul – periods of 6 to 7 seconds, all windswell. The combined energy is in the low double digits (an index of 144 to 434). It’s bumpy, weak, and just not worth it. The one clean-looking window on Wednesday afternoon the 12th, with 1.3m (roughly 4ft) of swell and cross-off wind, still has that silly short period. Don’t waste your time.

There’s a glimmer around Monday the 17th and Tuesday the 18th. The swell period stretches to 10 seconds, real groundswell, and the energy index gets into the mid‑300s to 471. The wind drops to a light breeze and the surface cleans up. It’s ordinary, but rideable. Tuesday morning the 18th with chest-high 1.5m (5ft) sets is your best bet if you’re desperate.

But the real score is further out. Look at Saturday the 22nd and Sunday the 23rd of August. We’re talking head-high to overhead 2.2m (7ft) on the sets from the North, with a mature 9-second period. The combined energy index is screaming into the 600s, reaching 808 on Sunday morning. The wind stays clean and cross-off all day. For a reef break, this is the full package – powerful, lined-up, and heavy. It’s a long way off, so don’t book the trip yet, but if the charts hold, only the experts should be in the water. It’s going to be a handful.

Before and after that peak, the north-easterly windswell keeps things lumpy and weak. By the 24th through 26th, size drops back to 3ft (0.9m) and the energy fades back into the low 100s. Another dead stretch.

So, keep your eyes on the 22nd and 23rd of August. That’s the only real standout for the crew who can handle some juice. The rest of the time? I’d go fishing.

Rusty.

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