Playa de Barrika Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, mate, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s on offer for the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, we’ve got a bit of a slow start ahead. The first several days are looking pretty ordinary, with small weak swells and mostly cross or cross-onshore winds messing up the surface. The water is sitting at 74°F, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least it’ll be comfortable while you’re scratching for waves.

The first real standout appears on Thursday, August 20th. That morning at Playa de Barrika, we’ve got a clean 5ft swell rolling in from the NNW with a 13-second period – that’s proper groundswell energy building up nicely. The combined energy is sitting at 1008 (moderate-strong), and with a light offshore breeze from the ENE, it’s going to be glassy and lined up. By the afternoon, the swell jumps to 8ft from the same direction, with a 12-second period, still offshore but a bit stronger breeze at 9 mph. This spot is a reef, so that longer-period groundswell will wrap in nicely. The energy is pumping at 1679 (strong). This is the best session of the whole window – if you’re an intermediate or above, get in the water.

After that, Friday the 21st turns messy again with cross-onshore winds and dropping swell, so don’t bother. There’s a gap of poor conditions through the weekend, with only small, choppy waves.

The next potential highlight is Monday, August 24th, early morning. Playa de Barrika gets a clean 7ft swell from the NW, with zero wind – glassy conditions. The energy is 716 (moderate-strong). That’s a solid wave, but at 7ft it’s getting a bit big for beginners, and the period is 9 seconds, so it’s a shorter-period swell, which means it’ll be more peaky and less predictable. Still, for the experienced crew, it’s a decent session.

Tuesday, August 25th morning also looks clean with 8ft NW swell and glassy conditions, energy at 964 (moderate-strong). Again, expert territory.

The last run worth noting is Wednesday, August 26th – morning and afternoon both have clean 5ft NW swell with light cross-offshore winds, energy around 410 (moderate). Good for a solid session without the size getting out of hand.

To wrap it up: Thursday the 20th is your best day by far – that’s the one to circle. The 24th and 25th come with size and clean conditions, but only for the experienced. The rest is mostly filler or blown out.

Rusty.

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