Ilbaritz - Edouard VII Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Ilbaritz - Edouard VII.

First thing you’ll notice is the water is way warmer than usual for this time of year – we’re talking about 4° above normal, sitting at 76°. That’s a real oddity, but it’s a nice one for a session in boardies.

Now, the honest truth: this 16-day window is a tough one. There’s a massive gap of poor conditions right from the start. After Sunday morning, things drop off hard. From Monday the 13th afternoon all the way through to Thursday the 24th, it’s mostly tiny, weak, and chopped up. That’s a long stretch of nearly two weeks with nothing worth paddling out for. The swell energy is almost always in the double digits – weak stuff – and the wind is often cross-onshore or onshore, making a mess of it.

The only real standout, the one you’d even consider getting wet for, is Sunday the 12th of July. Both the morning and afternoon sessions have a bit of life. The morning sees a 2ft swell from the WNW, 10-second period, with a light offshore wind from the east at 6 mph. That’s clean. The combined energy is weak (65), but it’s surfable. The afternoon glassed off right – NW wind, 6 mph, glassy conditions. The swell drops a little in period to 9 seconds, but still 2ft and clean. The water is still warm, and the crowd situation can be “often,” so expect some company. This is a reef break, so it handles a long-period swell fine, but here the period is moderate, so it’s a fair playing field.

After that, it’s pretty grim. There’s a flicker on Monday morning the 13th with a 4ft swell from the NW, but it’s short period (6 seconds) and the wind is glassy early. The energy is moderate (109), but the wave comment says “very ordinary.” It’s not going to be anything special. By afternoon, the wind turns cross-shore and the size drops. Then it’s a desert of poor surf until the very end of the outlook.

On the 27th of July (Monday), there’s a late pulse: 4ft from the WNW with a 9-second period and moderate energy (211). That’s the biggest swell of the whole window. But the wind is cross-onshore at 9 mph, and the wave comment is “poor surf conditions.” So it’s not a clean one. It’s a bit of a tease.

If you’re a beginner, the swell stays under 5ft for the whole period, so that’s not a worry – but the lack of quality will be. For experts, there’s nothing over 8ft, so no real power.

Bottom line: The only day to circle is Sunday the 12th. Get it while it’s clean. Everything else is a long wait for a messy, small wave.

Rusty.

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