Birling Gap Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s talk Birling Gap in feet and miles per hour. The next 16 days are looking real rough for a paddle. There’s a long stretch of poor surf from now through the first week of September, and the second week only has a couple of flickers of hope.

Right from the start, it’s a mess. The wind is mostly onshore or cross-onshore, often blowing fresh to strong, so the surface is going to be lumpy and choppy. The swell is short-period, mostly 5 to 7 seconds, so it’s just wind chop. The combined energy is mostly weak, with a few days like the 29th afternoon hitting 511 (moderate) and the 31st morning hitting 418 (moderate), but the wind just ruins it. The water on the 29th is 70°, which is much warmer than usual—about 7° above the average for this time of year, so that’s pretty unusual.

The one real standout is the morning of Thursday 10th September. It’s got a clean, offshore wind from the NE at 6 mph and a 4ft swell from the SW. That’s a proper glassy setup for a reef. The combined energy is only 76 (weak), and the period is 5 seconds, so it’s a weak, short little groundswell, but with the wind off the land, the surface will be smooth. The swell direction is SW, which is the best for this spot. This is the only clean morning in the whole 16 days.

The afternoon of the 10th is the next best thing. A 7ft swell from the SW, with a combined energy of 320 (moderate), and the wind is light cross-onshore, but it’s only rated as marginal. That 7ft is a bit big for a beginner, but for anyone with a bit of experience, it could be a decent late-day option.

The 11th has a couple more marginal windows, with 5ft and 5ft swells from the SW, but the wind is onshore, so it’s going to be messy. The energy is moderate (239 and 323), but the wind is not helping.

After the 11th, it’s back to tiny, weak swell and cross-onshore winds, so nothing worth chasing.

So, the best on offer is the morning of Thursday 10th September: clean, offshore wind, a 4ft SW swell, and the optimum direction. It’s a little weak, but it’s clean. The 10th afternoon is a close second, with a bigger, more powerful 7ft swell, but it’s not as clean. Crowds are often around at Birling Gap, so even on a clean day, you might have to share.

Overall, it’s a bleak run. The lack of consistent, clean surf is sort of normal for this spot when the wind is wrong, and here it’s mostly wrong. But forecasts can change, so keep an eye on that 10th morning.

Rusty.

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