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Birsay Bay Surf Forecast
/ Scot – Orkney (6 surf breaks) /
Surf Forecasts:
Birsay Bay surfForecast / Scot – Orkney / UK
48hr Weather and Surf, issued 12 pm Sunday 17 May 2026 BSTForecast update in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Birsay Bay surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's Birsay Bay sea temperature is
8.8° C
(Which is normal for this time of year)How big are the waves at Birsay Bay today?
The current surf forecast for Birsay Bay at 5PM is: 2.0m 13s primary swell from a West direction and 0.8m 8s secondary swell from a North direction (forecast issued at 12:00pm May 17). The wind direction is predicted to be cross-shore.
| Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height | Wave Period |
|---|---|---|
| Morning (17 May) | 5ft (1.6m) | 13s |
| Afternoon (17 May) | 6.5ft (2.0m) | 13s |
| Evening (17 May) | 6.5ft (2.0m) | 13s |
Table - waves today at Birsay Bay. (Swell directed towards the surf break)
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Sun morning. Very mild (max 10°C on Mon afternoon, min 8°C on Sun morning). Winds increasing (calm on Sun night, strong winds from the SE by Tue afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun 17 | Monday 18 | Tuesday 19 | Wed 20 | |||||||||||||||||||||
10 AM | 1 PM | 4 PM | 7 PM | 10 PM | 1 AM | 4 AM | 7 AM | 10 AM | 1 PM | 4 PM | 7 PM | 10 PM | 1 AM | 4 AM | 7 AM | 10 AM | 1 PM | 4 PM | 7 PM | 10 PM | 1 AM | 4 AM | 7 AM | |
Swell Height Map |    |    |    |    | ||||||||||||||||||||
W 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 12 | W 12 | W 12 | W 12 | W 11 | W 11 | W 11 | W 11 | W 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | W 13 | W 16 | W 16 | |
1001 | 1266 | 1349 | 1329 | 1305 | 1088 | 915 | 802 | 687 | 544 | 524 | 451 | 375 | 290 | 239 | 194 | 154 | 116 | 81 | 57 | 39 | 31 | 82 | 178 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | off | |
High Tide | 9:22AM3.25m | 9:46PM3.24m | 10:12AM3.22m | 10:31PM3.24m | 11:04AM3.10m | 11:19PM3.18m | ||||||||||||||||||
Low Tide | 3:43PM0.04m | 4:06AM0.02m | 4:28PM0.13m | 4:55AM0.01m | 5:14PM0.29m | 5:46AM0.09m | ||||||||||||||||||
 | |  |  |  | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | |  | | | | |
 | 4:37 | — | — | — | — | — | 4:35 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4:33 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4:31 | — |
 | — | — | — | 9:42 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9:44 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9:45 | — | — | — | 9:47 |
1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Temp °C | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
4 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 12 | W 12 | W 12 | W 12 | W 11 | W 11 | W 11 | W 11 | W 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | W 8 | W 16 |
 kJ | 1001 | 1266 | 1349 | 1329 | 1305 | 1088 | 915 | 802 | 687 | 544 | 524 | 451 | 375 | 290 | 239 | 194 | 154 | 116 | 81 | 57 | 39 | 24 | 23 | 178 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 8 | NNE 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | NNE 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 7 | W 13 | W 16 | W 8 |
| kJ | 144 | 118 | 92 | 92 | 71 | 69 | 68 | 49 | 49 | 68 | 72 | 50 | 50 | 49 | 33 | 33 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 11 | 11 | 31 | 82 | 12 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | W 16 | W 15 | W 15 | W 15 | W 14 | W 13 | NNE 8 | W 13 | ENE 8 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 4 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 6 | 31 | 6 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SE 3 | ESE 3 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 5 | SE 5 | SE 5 | SE 4 | SE 4 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 7 | 21 | 15 | 10 | 16 | 21 | 34 | 58 | 104 | 80 | 54 | 16 | 3 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 53 | 0 | 53 | 19 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 103 | 84 | 84 | 84 | 119 | 119 | 204 | 119 | 119 | 84 | 73 | 59 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Orkney Islands | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United Kingdom | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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