Surf Forecasts:
Crab Island surf forecast from 1 Sep 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Friday 4 Sep, 10AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 11s period, W swell with 1,898 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Crab Island this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Crab Island in the next 16 days are 3.0m 11s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 04) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.7m 4s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 06) at 10AM.
| Wave Type | Time (IST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Crab Island over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it—this forecast for Crab Island is a long, frustrating grind with only a couple of flickers of hope. The first week and a half is pretty much a write-off, with the good stuff not showing up until well into the second week.
The pattern is a real bummer for a while. The first few days have lumpy, cross-onshore winds and weak, short-period swell. The combined energy is moderate, peaking around 380 on Thursday the 3rd, but it’s all messy with a stiff breeze. It’s not paddleable, just frustrating.
On Friday the 4th, there’s a big jump in size with a 10ft W swell rolling in, and the combined energy gets strong at 1907. But the 25 mph onshore wind makes it a total mess—poor conditions across the board. That size is only for experts anyway. It settles a bit over the weekend, but we’re still dealing with cross-shore chop and marginal surf, with scores barely registering.
The real standout—the one you want to circle on the calendar—is Monday the 14th of September. The morning session at Crab Island (Clare) looks promising. We’ve got a clean 6ft W swell with a groundswell period of 12 seconds, and light cross-offshore winds from the SE. The combined energy is moderate-strong at 828. That’s proper wave energy with good shape, and the clean conditions should make for some fun, lined-up sets. It’s an advanced reef break that’s fairly consistent, and while crowds are often there, the quality on offer makes it worth it.
Before that, Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 13th offer tiny, clean waves with glassy conditions and offshore breezes, but the swell is weak—2ft to 3ft—and the energy is low (96 to 129). It’s surfable but very ordinary, more of a log session than anything punchy.
Tuesday the 15th of September has a glassy afternoon with a long 11-second period but only 3ft of swell. Again, it’s clean but tiny.
Bottom line: there’s a big gap of poor-to-marginal conditions until that Monday the 14th. That’s the only true standout. The rest is either too small, too windy, or too big and messy. If you’re keen, hold out for the 14th morning session.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 24mm), heaviest during Thu afternoon. Very mild (max 18°C on Wed night, min 14°C on Tue night). Winds increasing (light winds from the S on Tue night, fresh winds from the SW by Wed afternoon). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 6mm), mostly falling on Thu night. Warm (max 21°C on Sun afternoon, min 14°C on Sat morning). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the W on Thu night, light winds from the S by Sat afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | |||||||||||||||
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) | WSW 7 | WSW 7 | W 8 | SW 7 | WSW 7 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | W 10 | W 11 | W 11 | W 11 | W 10 | W 9 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | W 12 | W 10 | WSW 10 | WSW 9 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 197 | 208 | 114 | 96 | 196 | 368 | 322 | 380 | 1353 | 1898 | 1270 | 819 | 394 | 207 | 171 | 168 | 352 | 1187 | 666 | 551 | 560 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | on | on | cross-on | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross |
High Tide | 8:25AM4.21m | 8:39PM4.20m | 9:04AM4.04m | 9:22PM3.94m | 9:50AM3.81m | 10:16PM3.64m | 10:49AM3.56m | 11:27PM3.35m | 12:06PM3.39m | 00:58AM3.23m | 1:37PM3.42m | 2:31AM3.36m | 2:58PM3.67m | 3:44AM3.66m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:20PM0.44m | 2:40AM0.41m | 2:59PM0.65m | 3:21AM0.71m | 3:46PM0.92m | 4:11AM1.06m | 4:49PM1.22m | 5:24AM1.39m | 6:28PM1.39m | 7:15AM1.51m | 8:19PM1.23m | 8:50AM1.29m | 9:32PM0.84m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | |  |  |  |  | |  | | | |  | | |  | | | | |
 | 6:46 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — |
 | — | 8:27 | — | — | 8:24 | — | — | 8:22 | — | — | 8:20 | — | — | 8:17 | — | — | 8:15 | — | — | 8:13 | — |
mm | 2 | 2 | 7 | — | 1 | — | — | 9 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | 1 |
Temp °C | 17 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 19 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 14 | 15 |
Feels °C | 12 | 11 | 14 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 15 | 10 | 12 | 10 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | W 18 | W 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | — | SW 15 | — | — | SW 15 | SW 14 | W 11 | W 10 | W 9 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WNW 9 | W 12 | W 10 | — | WSW 9 |
| kJ | — | 6 | 114 | 34 | 19 | — | 8 | — | — | 9 | 8 | 819 | 394 | 207 | 171 | 168 | 7 | 1187 | 666 | — | 560 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | W 16 | SW 16 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | W 13 | SW 13 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | 5 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 7 | WSW 7 | SSE 2 | SW 7 | WSW 7 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | W 10 | W 11 | W 11 | — | — | SSE 3 | SSE 3 | S 4 | WSW 9 | — | — | WSW 10 | — |
| kJ | 197 | 208 | 1 | 96 | 196 | 368 | 322 | 380 | 1353 | 1898 | 1270 | — | — | 3 | 3 | 14 | 352 | — | — | 551 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 98 | 99 | 11 | 98 | 101 | 138 | 117 | 138 | 162 | 617 | 617 | 97 | 92 | 16 | 16 | 82 | 304 | 98 | 164 | 87 | 97 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Clare | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Ireland | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Crab Island 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 Crab Island Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Crab Island provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Crab Island can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Crab Island 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 (Crab Island) 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 Crab Island 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 Clare? If you are looking for accommodation near Crab Island, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Clare, consider staying in Galway which is 35 km (22 miles) away. Other places in and around Clare where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Inis which is 35 km (22 miles) away, Shannon, Foynes and Limerick.
Nearest