Ilbaritz - Bora Bora Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it. The next couple of weeks are looking pretty bleak for the most part, if I’m being honest. There’s a serious flat spell to start, and we’re gonna be waiting a while before anything with any sort of pulse shows up.

The only real spot on the menu is Ilbaritz - Bora Bora (Bora Bora). It’s a reef break, exposed and looking for that west in the swell. To kick things off, the water is running way warmer than normal for this time of year, about 5°F above average—that’s a big deal, you’ll feel it.

We’re looking at a solid stretch of nothing for the first week and a half. From Tuesday the 4th through to around Thursday the 14th, there’s just no real surf to speak of. The swell is tiny, mostly under 2ft, and the energy is weak, with readings in the 20s to 90s. There’s a little bump on Thursday the 6th morning, 3ft at 8 seconds from the NW, but conditions are just ordinary. The wind is cross-off, so it’s clean, but the waves are gutless. You see a few glassy mornings in there, like Friday the 7th and Saturday the 8th, but again, the swell just isn’t there. It’s about as close to a lake as you’ll get.

We finally get a little pulse of life around Tuesday the 11th morning. The swell pushes up to 3ft at 10 seconds from the NW, and the energy jumps to 162. It’s glassy, which is a big plus. It’s still not big, but it’s the first morning that looks like you might actually get a few fun ones. Don’t get too excited though, the afternoon goes cross-shore and chop spoils it.

Then it dies again. The 12th, 13th, and 14th are all back to tiny, weak, and mostly poor. The swell drops back down to 1ft. It’s a grind.

The first real standout, and honestly the only one in the whole window, is on Tuesday the 19th of August. The morning is looking special. The swell jumps up to a solid 12ft at 10 seconds from the NW. The energy reading is through the roof at 2749, which is very strong. The wind is glassy, and it’s calling for excellent conditions for experienced surfers. This is a big, powerful groundswell, and it’s going to be way too much for beginners. The afternoon is still big, but the cross-on wind at 15 km/h will chop it up a bit. This is the day to circle, but it’s still a week and a half away, so don’t book the time off just yet. The build-up on Monday the 18th looks messy, with strong winds and rain, so conditions are going to be poor before that window opens.

So, that’s the story. A whole lot of nothing, then one big, powerful morning that could be the best of the entire month. Keep the faith.

Rusty

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