Ilbaritz - Edouard VII Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Hey crew, Rusty here. Gotta be honest, the next couple weeks look like a whole lot of nothing. We're looking at a long stretch of tiny, wind-blown, and disorganized surf. It's gonna test your patience, that's for sure.

The only spot showing any kind of life is Ilbaritz - Edouard VII, a reef break exposed to the west. It's fairly consistent, but that doesn't mean much when the waves are this small. Water temp is 76°, which is about 5° warmer than normal for this time of year. That's a big deal – the ocean's running really hot, and that can shake things up.

Kicking off Wednesday the 5th, there's a tiny 2ft W-NW swell, but it's got rain on it and almost no power behind it. It's glassy, which is a tease, but there's just nothing to ride. The whole first week is a bust. We're looking at days of sub-3ft surf, with periods dropping below 8 seconds, and the wind is mostly cross-on or straight onshore. The 8th bottom out with 1ft and next to no energy. The following days are much the same, with a couple of surfable but very ordinary moments on the 6th and 7th when a light offshore or glassy wind shows up, but the swell is barely a ripple. The 11th has a slightly better 3ft, but it's a short-period NW windswell, and while the morning is clean with a light E offshore, it's hardly gonna get the heart pumping.

The second week is more of the same. There's a slight pulse of energy around the 15th, with the swell pushing up to 3ft and the energy climbing, but it's all onshore and messy. The 17th keeps the size around 4-4ft, but the period is short and it's cross-on slop.

Then, just when you're about to give up, there's a glimmer. On the morning of Wednesday the 19th, the stars finally align. It's still small at 4ft, but the wind is completely calm – dead glass. The period is a more respectable 9 seconds, and the energy is the most we've seen in weeks. This is the standout. It's not big, but it's clean and the break should actually have some shape to it. That's the morning to be out there. The afternoon is back to cross-on junk, so it's a narrow window.

The final day, the 20th, holds the same 4ft swell but the wind is onshore and the tides look questionable, so it's a far less appealing option.

So, there you have it. A long, dusty stretch with one clean morning on the horizon. The 19th of August is the one to circle. It's a promise, but a distant one, and forecasts can change. For now, keep the boards in the car and the wax in the fridge. It tends not to stay poor for long, so let's hope this flat spell breaks soon.

Rusty.

Read more