Zumaya (Playa de Itxurun) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, gather 'round. Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on offer for Zumaya.

It's a quiet start, but there's a real pulse building for the end of the week and beyond. The water is sitting at a very warm 77°F, which is a good five and a half degrees warmer than usual for this time of year, so you'll be surfing in boardies for a while yet. The early part of the week is pretty flat and sloppy, but hold tight.

Wednesday the 19th is a write-off. Tiny, weak 1ft waves with no energy and poor conditions. Not worth getting wet for.

Thursday the 20th is where it gets interesting. The morning session at Zumaya (Playa de Itxurun) is the standout of the first week. We’ve got a clean 4ft NW groundswell with a nice 11-second period pushing moderate energy. The wind is glassy from the WNW, so expect some clean, fun lines. This is the one to aim for. The afternoon gets messy with onshore wind and rain, so get out there early.

Friday the 21st is a bit of a write-off. The swell bumps up to 6ft, but the cross-shore wind makes it choppy and the quality drops. Marginal at best.

Saturday the 22nd has a glassy, clean morning with a 4ft NW swell, but it’s a bit weaker. Decent for a longboard or a foiler, but nothing special.

Sunday the 23rd and Monday the 24th are a mess of small, weak, or windy conditions. Not your weekend.

Now, here's the real talk. There’s a big, powerful pulse of swell forecast for the end of the month. However, the good news comes with a serious caveat. From Thursday the 27th, we see a massive jump in energy. The morning has a huge 12ft WNW swell with a very strong energy reading, and the wind is clean and cross-offshore. That's a huge number. But, to be straight with you, for a beginner-friendly beach/jetty like this, 12ft is far too big. That's expert-only territory. The same goes for the following days. The 31st of August and 1st of September see swells over 8ft with periods hitting 12-13 seconds, and energy readings massive. Those are huge, heavy waves and the forecast says they are too big for this break.

For the average surfer, the real window opens on Friday the 28th. The morning is a gem. A clean, glassy 7ft NW swell with solid energy. That's a proper, powerful wave but still manageable for strong intermediates. That’s your next real target.

After that, the surf settles into a more manageable 4-6ft range from Tuesday the 2nd of September through to the end of the outlook. The Wednesday the 3rd morning looks promising again with a clean 4ft glassy NW swell.

To sum it up: the best clean, surfable waves for the average crew are Thursday the 20th morning and Friday the 28th morning. The big stuff from the 27th onward is for the brave and the expert only. The rest is a mix of onshore mess or small dribble.

Keep an eye on the forecast, things can change.

Rusty.

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