Ilbaritz - Edouard VII Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, cobber, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Ilbaritz - Edouard VII, a reef set-up that’s fairly consistent and exposed to the west.

Water temp is sitting at 75°, which is much warmer than normal for this time of year – a solid 5° above average, so you can leave the wetsuit at home.

The next 16 days start with a real dud. Thursday afternoon is a write-off with only 1ft of weak, short-period slop, a risk of thunderstorms, and glassy wind that can’t save the poor surf conditions. Friday ain't much better, with onshore wind in the morning and messy cross-shore in the arvo – just small, ordinary waves. Honestly, it’s a grim start.

But hold onto your leash, because Saturday 29 August morning is the clear standout. The swell bumps up to 6ft, clean from the WNW with a 9-second period and the offshore is glassy from the NE. The combined energy kicks hard at 559 – that’s moderate, pushing strong. For a reef break, this is top shelf: good size, clean conditions, and it’s an intermediate-friendly wave. This is the session to circle. The afternoon will see it drop a notch and get a bit of cross-on chop, so get it early.

Sunday 30 August still has a fun 4ft morning with glassy conditions, then Monday 31 and Tuesday 1 September both offer clean, glassy mornings with 4ft to 5ft of NW swell. Consistency is good through this stretch, but none match Saturday’s punch. From Wednesday 2 September onward, the run of decent mornings fades into smaller, weaker swell, with poor winds returning for most afternoons. There’s a slight tease on Saturday 5 September with a clean offshore morning and a groundswell (11-second period) pushing 3ft, but it’s ordinary.

The second week is a mixed bag. The swell never really fires again, and most mornings offer weak, surfable waves in the 2ft to 3ft range. The best of a quiet bunch is Tuesday 8 and Wednesday 9 September mornings, with clean, cross-off or offshore wind and 3ft waves – nothing to write home about, but it’s a paddle. The combined energy is low (200-211). After that, it drops right off, with tiny waves and onshore wind taking over from 10 September onward. There’s a 3-day gap of poor conditions from 6 to 7 September.

So, the only true standout is Saturday 29 August morning – 6ft of clean, glassy, moderate-energy swell. The rest is a lot of ordinary, small days. Surf’s not dead, but it ain’t exactly on fire either.

Rusty.

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