Zumaya (Playa de Itxurun) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into it.

The next couple of weeks are a bit of a slow burn. We’ve got a stretch of small, weak surf coming up that’s only gonna get interesting for the kite crew, not us paddle surfers. But hang tight, because there’s a real window of quality waiting at the end of the run.

First up, the immediate outlook is pretty grim. We're looking at a few days of poor surf conditions. The waves are small and the energy is weak. It's one of those stretches where you’re better off checking the tide charts than the surf cams. This flat spell is going to last a good few days, with not much to get excited about until Thursday the 20th.

Speaking of Thursday the 20th, that’s when things start to perk up a little. On the morning of the 20th, we finally see some life. The wave height picks up to 4ft, but more importantly, the period jumps to 11 seconds, which means it’s got some push to it. The combined energy is moderate (304) and the wind is glassy, which is a huge plus. It’s not a massive day, but it’ll be the first clean surf we’ve seen. It’s still only a 2-star day, but for a beach/jetty set-up like Zumaya (Playa de Itxurun), it’ll be worth a look.

The water is sitting at 77°, which is a notable 5° warmer than the long-term average. That’s right, we’re in some very unusual warm water for this time of year, something you don’t see often.

Moving on, the swell builds a bit for the morning of Friday the 21st. We’ve got 5ft of swell coming from the NW with a 10-second period, and the energy jumps into the moderate range (478). The wind is light and cross-off, which will keep the waves clean. It's another step up, and signs are pointing to some decent morning sessions. The afternoon gets messy with onshore winds, so get in early.

Saturday the 22nd morning is another one to keep an eye on. It’s a bit smaller at 4ft, but the wind is glassy out of the SW, which is perfect. The energy is still moderate (208). It’ll be cleaner than Friday, but a bit less powerful. The afternoon looks like it might get a little mixed up with the rain, but the glassy morning is the call.

After that, we slide back into a terrible stretch. From the 23rd through the 29th, it’s a wasteland of weak, short-period swell and poor winds. It’s a long, dull period where the swell energy dips way down, sometimes below 100. The wind is mostly onshore or cross, making things choppy and uninviting. It's a good time to work on your pop-up in the living room.

There’s a small blip on the 27th, with some clean but weak waves, and again on the 28th and 29th, but the energy is just too low to get excited about. It's not until the final day of the month that things start to look more interesting.

On the morning of Monday, 31 August, we see another glassy morning with 4ft swell on the books. The energy is moderate (164), but it’s the promise of what’s coming that matters.

Now, for the real standout. Fast forward to the start of September. Tuesday, the 1st of September is looking like the pick of the entire forecast. While the morning is still a bit average, the afternoon brings a pulse of proper groundswell. We’re talking 6ft of NW swell with a long, 11-second period. The energy jumps to a strong 671, and crucially, the wind is light and clean from the SW. This is the one to circle. It’s a long way off, so gotta treat it as promising but not locked in, but all the signs are there.

And it doesn’t stop there. The morning of Wednesday, the 2nd of September continues the run. It’s slightly smaller at 5ft, but still has that strong energy (662) and a 10-second period. The wind is offshore from the S, which is perfect for this spot. Another great session on the cards. The afternoon, however, looks like it gets blown out by a moderate cross-onshore wind, so again, I'd look at the mornings.

So there you have it. A long, flat spell ahead, but a quality window of clean, powerful surf for the first couple of days of September. Don't sleep on it.

Rusty out.

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