Zumaya (Playa de Itxurun) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's take a long, honest look at what's coming down the line for this corner of the coast.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you: it's a grim start. The forecast for Zumaya (Playa de Itxurun) is pretty flat and crummy for a solid week and a half. We’re talking day after day of tiny, weak, onshore-chopped up dribble. The swell energy is barely a whisper, mostly sitting in the double digits or low 100s. The wind is almost always cross-on or onshore, and when it does go glassy, the waves are just too small—like 1ft to 2ft. For a spot that needs a proper NW or NNW groundswell, this stretch is a write-off. It’s the kind of spell where you don’t even bother checking the cam.

Now, after that long wait, things finally get interesting. The real standout window looks like Monday the 17th of August. That morning, we’ve got a solid jump in the combined energy all the way up to 241, with the swell building to 5ft out of the WNW. That’s a proper size for an intermediate surfer, and the best part? The wind is forecast to be glassy. Dead calm. That means clean, open lines rolling in. The water temp is about average for this time of year, so nothing freaky there. The only downside is the period is only 7 seconds, so it’s a short-period wind swell, but with that kind of size and glassy conditions, Zumaya’s jetty setup will actually have some fun, punchy waves. Crowds are often here, so expect company.

The following Tuesday, the 18th, gets even bigger—8ft out of the WNW (energy hitting 868!)—but that’s pushing into expert territory. With the wind variable and cross-on, it’s going to be a messy, powerful wall. That’s a session for the very experienced only, and even then, the quality will be questionable.

The rest of the second week is a mixed bag of leftover swell fading back into the mediocre zone. The 19th sees a pulse of 5ft, but the onshore wind is up at 9 mph, turning it into a choppy mess.

So here’s the bottom line: suffer through the flat spell, because that glassy, head-high morning on the 17th is the only true standout we’ve got. Mark your calendar.

Rusty.

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