La Barra Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking for the next couple of weeks.

The surf window isn’t exactly firing straight away. We’ve got a bit of a slow start, with the first few days being a bit of a write-off due to onshore wind messing things up. Wait for the first proper window.

La Barra is your spot. It’s a river/jetty break that’s fairly consistent, exposed to the SSW swell, and it handles that direction well. The water is sitting at 86.4°F, which is about average for this time of year.

For the first week, it’s grim until Tuesday morning the 11th. That morning, we get a glassy calm with 2.6ft SSW swell at 13 seconds. The energy is moderate (385) and it’ll be clean, but it’s small. That pattern repeats: mornings are the only chance, as each afternoon gets chopped out by the cross-onshore breeze. Expect the same for Wednesday and Thursday mornings—glassy and small.

Now, the first real standout comes Friday morning, August 14th. It’s glassy calm, with a punchy 3.0ft SSW swell, but the period jumps to 18 seconds. That’s long-period groundswell, packed with energy (645). For a river mouth setup, that long period means the waves will be well-shaped and powerful, with long lulls between sets. This is the one to circle on the calendar.

Another great call is Saturday morning, August 15th. The swell bumps up to 4.3ft from the SSW, 16-second period, and glassy conditions. The combined energy is solid (842). This is definitely a premium session for intermediate surfers. It might be a touch busy though—crowds are possible here.

The following week from the 17th keeps mornings clean, but the swell drops back to 2.6-3.0ft. The standout there is Wednesday morning, August 19th, with a light offshore breeze (NNW) reported as “off,” and a clean 3.0ft, 15-second SSW swell. Very good conditions and a chance to get some proper waves without the afternoon chop.

Looking further out, there’s a promising but less certain window around Saturday morning, August 22nd. The swell is tiny at 2.0ft, but the period is a massive 21 seconds. That’s a very long, groundswell that will be super clean in the glassy conditions.

And then the big one: Sunday morning, August 23rd. This is a real eye-opener. A 6.9ft SSE swell, but only 8-second period. That’s short-period windswell, not groundswell. The energy is through the roof at 1652, but that short period means it will be a chaotic, jumbled close-out at a beach break. For a river mouth setup, it won't hold shape. It will be messy and messy for paddling out. This is squarely for experienced surfers only, and honestly, it looks more like a day for the kite crew than a clean paddle session.

To sum it up: the best bet is Friday morning, August 14th if you want that classic, powerful groundswell, and Saturday morning, August 15th if you want a bit more size with the same clean, glassy conditions. Don’t sleep on that Wednesday the 19th either if you want a quieter, clean morning.

Stay stoked.

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