Surf Forecasts:
Back Strands surf forecast from 26 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 27 Aug, 1AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 10s period, W swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 1 Sep, 4AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 8s period, W swell with 339 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 27 Aug, 1AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 10s period with W swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Back Strands this week:
The surf forecast for Back Strands over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 27) at 1AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 10s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Back Strands in the next 16 days are 1.6m 8s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 01) at 4AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.4m 3s period and expected on Monday (Aug 31) at 7AM.
| Wave Type | Time (IST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1AM (Thu 27th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 1AM (Thu 27th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 4AM (Tue 1st Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Back Strands over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Back Strands over the next couple of weeks.
Straight up, this is a rough patch. We’re looking at a long, dry spell of poor surf conditions that stretches all the way from the start of the outlook right through to the morning of Sunday, September 6th. That’s over a week of barely a ripple worth paddling for. The swell is tiny, the wind is mostly on it or cross, and the energy is weak. It’s a real bummer.
The first faint glimmer of hope shows up on the morning of Sunday, September 6th. We get a bit of a bump from the WNW with a swell around 3ft, a period of 9 seconds, and the wind swinging SSE – that’s an offshore breeze. The combined energy reading is low (86), but it’s clean. It’s surfable, but very ordinary. The water temp is about average for the time of year.
Monday, September 7th has a bit more size on the morning session, with a 10ft swell from the WNW. That’s a big wave, but it’s blowing a fresh 22 mph cross-off from the SSW. The energy is strong (1346), but the whole setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. It’s a big, windy, messy beast.
The real standout, if you can call it one, is the morning of Wednesday, September 9th. We get a 3ft swell from the west with an 8-second period, and a light cross-off breeze from the SSE. The energy is moderate (120), and the reports say the waves are surfable but very ordinary. It’s the best the forecast has to offer, but don’t expect any magic.
So, overall, it’s a quiet period. The first week is a write-off. The second week offers a couple of small windows for a paddle, but nothing that’s going to get the blood pumping. Stay patient, keep an eye on the charts, and we’ll see what the next run brings.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Very mild (max 19°C on Thu afternoon, min 14°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 26mm), heaviest during Sat morning. Very mild (max 15°C on Fri night, min 12°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Fri night, fresh winds from the W by Mon morning). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 8 | W 7 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 7 | NW 7 | W 7 | NNW 6 | W 11 | W 10 | W 9 | WNW 5 | W 10 | W 10 | W 8 | WNW 8 | W 8 | W 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 10 | 10 | 67 | 60 | 40 | 22 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 13 | 21 | 28 | 25 | 33 | 245 | 65 | 294 | 207 | 140 | 88 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | on | glassy | cross | on | cross-off | cross | on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross |
High Tide | 5:41AM2.80m | 5:57PM3.30m | 6:13AM2.97m | 6:28PM3.50m | 6:45AM3.12m | 6:58PM3.64m | 7:16AM3.23m | 7:29PM3.71m | 7:48AM3.29m | 8:00PM3.70m | 8:21AM3.29m | 8:33PM3.60m | 8:55AM3.23m | 9:10PM3.42m | |||||||
Low Tide | 11:35AM0.61m | 00:09AM0.50m | 12:06PM0.43m | 00:40AM0.32m | 12:37PM0.29m | 1:09AM0.18m | 1:08PM0.20m | 1:39AM0.11m | 1:40PM0.18m | 2:10AM0.10m | 2:13PM0.22m | 2:42AM0.18m | 2:49PM0.33m | 3:17AM0.33m | |||||||
 |  |  |  | |  | | |  |  | |  |  | | | | | |  | | | |
 | 6:28 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — |
 | — | 8:40 | — | — | 8:37 | — | — | 8:36 | — | — | 8:34 | — | — | 8:30 | — | — | 8:29 | — | — | 8:25 | — |
mm | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 5 | 9 | 6 | 2 | — | — | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Temp °C | 17 | 18 | 16 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 17 |
Feels °C | 15 | 17 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 8 | W 7 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 7 | NW 7 | NNW 6 | W 7 | NW 7 | W 5 | WNW 5 | W 11 | — | W 10 | — | WNW 8 | W 8 | W 8 |
| kJ | 10 | 10 | 67 | 60 | 40 | 22 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 16 | 9 | 9 | — | 65 | — | 207 | 140 | 88 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 8 | W 11 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | W 7 | W 10 | W 11 | W 10 | W 9 | NW 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 2 | 21 | 28 | 25 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NW 8 | NW 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 14 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | NNW 5 | NW 5 | — | — | NNW 6 | WNW 4 | — | — | WNW 5 | W 10 | W 5 | W 8 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 4 | — | — | 13 | 7 | — | — | 33 | 245 | 37 | 294 | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 117 | 32 | 0 | 7 | 19 | 369 | 268 | 268 | 121 | 178 | 234 | 48 | 17 | 89 | 127 | 251 | 265 | 10 | 53 | 127 | 53 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Sligo | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Ireland | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Back Strands surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Back Strands Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Back Strands provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Back Strands can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Back Strands surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Back Strands) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Back Strands may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Are you planning a holiday in Sligo? If you are looking for accommodation near Back Strands, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Sligo, consider staying in Sligo which is 19 km (12 miles) away. Other places in and around Sligo where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Killybegs which is 21 km (13 miles) away, Enniskillen, Ballina and Letterkenny.
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