At 7.30 a.m:
Constantine (3*): 6 t0 8 feet
The overnight rain and wind are both easing as a more gentle dawn lazily brightens the morning.
The surf is growling through with four to five to six feet of thick and powerful waves pushing into the bay and much bigger sets cleaning up every twenty minutes or so.
The wind is a bit sideshore right now and so those waves are breaking all a bit thick and erratic, fast moving rips swirling around the peaks. But the forecast is for light and getting lighter south easterlies which should groom those waves as the day goes on. The swell should settle too, allowing those waves a little more time.
It could be really very good in a few hours!
And brighter too!
Harlyn (4*): 3 to 4 feet
The tide is real high right now but there are solid three to four foot waves pushing through and onto the high tide bank.
It’s all bit thick for itself with a lot of energy stored in those waves but as the tide eases itself off that bank and this swell settles then we should be seeing some very nice surf spinning itself ashore.
It could be good here today!
Today’s Tide Times:
Low Tide: 13:24 (0.8m) High Tide: 19:18 (7.5m)
Surf Forecast for Saturday 31st October 2015
Three feet, offshore and eventually brightening up.
Most of the surf breaks along the entire coast should have some great surf today!
Surf Conditions for the Halloween Weekend
More swell is advancing our way as the wind calms itself and settles more offshore as the Halloween Weekend approaches.
Friday is starting out quite big with a well spaced five to six foot and bigger swell powering our way. The wind is likely to have eased overnight and is forecast to ease itself to the south east, offshore at all of our surf breaks locally.
And we should see some brighter weather starting to settle too!
The swell is likely to have settled by Saturday, a 10 second 3 foot swell offering some great surf as those still big tides wash in and out before you know it.
And, as the swell increases again and the weather twitches back to something more summery, Sunday is starting to promise some great surf, great conditions and great weather!
So, have a great weekend, wherever you are and whatever you’re doing!
SJ’s Surf Forecast for the SW
Forecast last updated at 20:45 Thursday 29th October 2015
[Don’t forget to look at this forecast the day before you go beach for the latest, as things can often change!]
The Last 8 years…:
‘It’s been 8 years since this forecast stopped being broadcast regularly online, on BBC Radio, and on TV, and for the British Surfing Association. I went on my travels for six months from October 2007 to March 2008. A1Surf.com was put up for sale sold which Friday-Ad bought in the Summer of 2008, and I was officially on ‘gardening leave’ for a ‘while’. The recession hit in September 2008, and the industry changed, the British Surfing Association went, and has now been replaced by surfinggb.com The great guys at magicseaweed.com including Ben Freeston took up the mantle and pushed the boundaries and limits of free surfing information on the web even further and for many they became the one stop place for surfing online – having recently been bought out by an international company. So now is time to bring a little something back to British surfing… As for me, I have grown a little older and wiser, met a great lady in my wife where we work on her social enterprise helping vulnerable adults and we have an amazing young daughter – happy days :)’
In this time of need and recession, please support your local surf shops and surfers such as:
Des at http://www.constantinesurf.com (Constantine)
Dave at http://www.bodyboardhq.co.uk (Portreath)
Tony (surf photography) at http://www.tonyplant.co.uk (Newquay)
Steve at http://www.croyde-surf-hire.co.uk (Croyde)
Dig at http://www.baysurfshop.co.uk (Woolacombe)
The near future / news:
‘He waits; that’s what he does.
And I tell you what: tick followed tock followed tick followed tock.
Watch this space – might or might not happen…’
The Rest Of The Week:
‘Last few days have been OK – especially Friday. Check out Des’s reports at constantinesurf.com – Half-term week delivers surf in bucket-loads this week.’
Sunrise and sunset – 07:05 and 17:05
Twilight starts and ends – 06:30 and 17:35
Midday – 12:03
Length of day – 10:00
Offshore Sea Temp approx – 15 C / 59 F
Monday 26th:
‘Strong off-shores with a jump in size later in the day when the beginnings of a new swell hits. Seek shelter away from these winds, especially those that work at a high tide when you’re likely to get most shelter. Might be a busy day for the life-guards and the RNLI as people may get caught out when sneaker sets start to hit later on.’
Swell direction approx – (i) medium W-WNW going very-strong W-WSW
Wind direction approx – strong SSE-SE going SSE
Weather outlook – mixture of overcast conditions giving way to some rain showers and the odd sunny spell
North Coast approx – 3ft (Waist-high) going 6-10ft (head-high to well-overhead)
South Coast approx – blown-out
Tides – 10:05 Low, 16:01 High
Tuesday 27th:
‘STONKING! Take care out there.’
Swell direction approx – (i) very-strong WSW
Wind direction approx – light to medium S
Weather outlook – overcast with heavy showers, possibly drying out in the afternoon
North Coast approx – 12ft (double over-head) going 6-8ft (over-head)
South Coast approx – 4-6ft (chest to head-high) going 3ft (waist-high)
Tides – 10:51 Low, 16:46 High (spring tides)
Wednesday 28th:
‘A drop in size, and the cross-shores on the North will dictate shelter.’
Swell direction approx – (i) medium SW
Wind direction approx – medium S going S-SW
Weather outlook – brighter day, mostly dry, with some sunshine and the odd light shower
North Coast approx – 5-6ft (shoulder to head-high)
South Coast approx – 3-4ft (waist to chest-high)
Tides – 11:33 Low, 17:31 High (spring tides)
Thursday 29th:
‘Choppy/messy/junky start to the day, but should clean up a bit towards the end of the day as the winds turn more Southerly.’
Swell direction approx – (i) medium SW going weak WSW
Wind direction approx – medium SW going S
Weather outlook – overcast but dry
North Coast approx – 5-6ft (shoulder to head-high)
South Coast approx – 3ft (waist-high)
Tides – 12:18 Low (spring tide)
Friday 30th:
‘The wave-fest continues on the North with quality waves cleaning up as the day progresses. High tide around 1pm though.’
Swell direction approx – (i) very strong going strong W
Wind direction approx – medium S going SSE
Weather outlook – overcast and damp start but soon drying out
North Coast approx – 8-10ft (1.5 x overhead) going 6-8ft (overhead)
South Coast approx – 3ft (waist-high) going (1-3 ft / knee to waist-high)
Tides – 06:36 Low, 13:03 High
Weekend Summary:
‘Plenty of good clean waves for this Halloween weekend.’
Saturday 31st (Halloween):
‘Hard to gauge size due to multiple small swells. Could be waist-high at minimum but with some much bigger sets around head-high.’
Swell direction approx – (i) multiple small swells, main one is a medium W
Wind direction approx – medium SE going light-medium E-SE
Weather outlook – overcast start, turning cloudy/brighter in the afternoon, dry throughout
North Coast approx – 3-6ft (waist-high, with some head-high sets)
South Coast approx – 1-3ft (waist-high / blown out)
Tides – 07:20 High, 13:48 Low
Sunday 1st November:
‘Excellent almost glassy conditions,with some sunny spells to boot. Excellent!’
Swell direction approx – (i) strong W-WNW (ii) weak SW
Wind direction approx – light and variable
Weather outlook – mixture of cloud and plenty of sunny spells
North Coast approx – 6-8ft (overhead) going 4-6ft (chest to head-high)
South Coast approx – 3ft (waist-high)
Tides – 08:04 High, 14:34 Low
Early Next Week (Courtesy of meteorologist Jeremy Plester):
‘There is seemingly no end to this pumpathon. There is at least another week to ten days of this to come … I think this could go down in history as the most amazing run of surf for a couple of decades. It’s been pumping for a week.’
The scale for measuring conditions:
0-1ft – Unridable/Flat
1-2ft – Kneehigh
3ft – Waisthigh
4-5ft – Chest/Shoulderhigh
6ft – Headhigh
6-8ft = 1-1.5x Overhead
8-10ft = 1.5x Overhead
10-12ft = 2x Overhead
Please Note!
Wave height predictions are based on the larger breaks on both coasts such as Fistral and Croyde for the North, and Praa Sands and Bantham for the South.
Wave height is measured from the front of the wave, and 6ft would usually mean a ‘head-high’ wave.
Try and use some ‘local’ knowledge about what the wave sizes will be elsewhere. For example the Newquay Bay area is generally 1/3 to 3/4 the size of Fistral, increasing the further up the bay you go from Towan to Lusty Glaze, and that it will be clean on a W wind at ‘harbour left’ at Towan at mid-tide’ for example.
Tide times are based on Newquay.
Stay Stoked!
SJ