exposed head-on to the swell today (city-level)
- window
- All year when the sea allows; in August it is the clean alternative to a crowded bay.
- tide
- Cantabrian regime, spring range up to 4.5 m. At the point the current wraps the cape and on springs it can take you half a kilometre without you noticing.
- shelter
- The cliff cuts the west; on a NW it breaks full on and there is no exit up the wall.
- conditions
- Cleaner water than in the bay because the Lea bar is to the west; 5-8 m is normal.
- hazard
- Karraspio is 369 m west, already outside the 250 m of art. 14.3 — this mark slid here for exactly that reason, and in July the difference shows in the number of swimmers, not only in the regulation. A wall with no exits: in and out at the same place. censused bathing zone — from 1 Jun to 30 Sep art. 14.3 of Decreto 198/2000 bars spearfishing inside it and within 250 m
- access
- From Karraspio along the coast path eastward, 600 m; in off a rock ramp between two boulders.
The Mendexa cliff past Artzabal point, already clear of the Lea bar; boulders and shallow caves at 4-10 m, 369 m east of the Karraspio bathing zone.
Google Mapsexposed head-on to the swell today (city-level)
- window
- Summer and early-autumn windows; with a north-west sea running, the shoal is simply dangerous.
- tide
- Cantabrian regime, spring range up to 4.5 m. On the crossing to the island the ebb pushes towards the harbour mouth: cross at slack water.
- shelter
- Nothing in front across the whole 300-40° sector; the shoal breaks before the shore does, so it warns you when there is swell.
- conditions
- Clean rock from 5 to 16 m; the best visibility in the municipality, 8-10 m on a land-wind day.
- hazard
- No mapped zone nearby — the nearest bathing zone is 3.1 km away and the harbour 3.0 km. What there is: surf over the shoal, a westward rip and not a soul for kilometres.
- access
- Drive to the top and a long walk down the path; enter off the platform and get out on a rising tide.
Wild coast towards Ea; the Penitentzi harria shoal breaks on little swell and holds scorpionfish and conger among the boulders. 3 km from the nearest bathing zone.
Google Maps⚠️ This point is inside the restricted zone “Zona de baño censada «Karraspio» (Mendexa) + 250 m — pesca submarina prohibida (art. 14.3, Decreto 198/2000), 1 jun – 30 sep”: fishing there is regulated (season, gear, permit), not banned outright. Read the zone's rules before you go.
exposed head-on to the swell today (city-level)
- window
- June to October is the clearest water, and exactly when the bathing zone is live: go at first light and stay on the north face.
- tide
- Cantabrian regime, spring range up to 4.5 m. The channel between islet and shore speeds up on the ebb and is crossed only at slack water.
- shelter
- The north face is open to the 300-40° sector: with a NW groundswell there is no entry. On a southerly the surface flattens and the water clears.
- conditions
- On a flat sea visibility runs 5-8 m; after rain the Lea estuary drops it below two, and the island is the last thing to clear.
- hazard
- Karraspio is 213 m south-east — INSIDE the 250 m of art. 14.3 in season, so from 1 June to 30 September this mark is not fishable and the page does not hide it; out of season the ban is not active. The harbour is 230 m west. Boats run between the island and the town. censused bathing zone — from 1 Jun to 30 Sep art. 14.3 of Decreto 198/2000 bars spearfishing inside it and within 250 m port water: art. 18.2.2 of Decreto 198/2000 closes ports, docks, anchorages and channels all year
- access
- Swim from Isuntza beach or round the outside from Karraspio; about 400 m. On a spring low part of the island is joined by the gravel spit.
The island that closes the bay; rock-and-boulder drop-off at 10-15 m, sea bass and sea bream. It stands 213 m off the Karraspio bathing zone, and in summer that matters.
Google Mapsexposed head-on to the swell today (city-level)
- window
- Short summer windows: the rest of the year the north-west groundswell shuts this point for weeks at a time.
- tide
- Cantabrian regime, spring range up to 4.5 m. The drop-off fishes best on the flood: on the ebb the Oria's water reaches this far.
- shelter
- Nothing stands in front of it: the 300-40° sector rolls straight in and 320° is the worst bearing. It only works on a south or south-west land wind.
- conditions
- Slab and boulder bottom from 4 to 14 m; on a clean day you see 6-9 m, more than in the bay because the Lea's runoff does not reach here.
- hazard
- No mapped zone nearby: the nearest bathing zone (Isuntza) is 1.7 km away and the harbour 1.5 km. The risk here is the sea, not the law — an open point with no easy exit and no phone signal on the path down.
- access
- Footpath from the Antzoriz height and a scramble down the rock; you jump in off the slab and get out where you got in — there is no second option.
Headland north-west of the bay; slabs and boulders at mid-water, the most exposed point in the municipality and the emptiest of people.
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