Crantock Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – it’s a grim picture for surfing over the next 16 days at Crantock. We’ve got nearly two full weeks where I wouldn’t even bother waxing up, from now until about the 3rd of August, with very little to get excited about. There’s a small window of hope right at the very end, but it’s a long, quiet wait for it.

Right now, on the morning of Thursday the 23rd, it’s glassy with a tiny 2ft swell from the NNW, but the wave energy is weak as anything (55) and the period is short. The water is sitting at 64°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, which is nice, but it doesn’t help the surf. The whole of the first week is plagued by onshore and cross-onshore winds, mostly from the north, keeping everything small and messy. Through Saturday and Sunday we see the swell bump up, with Sunday the 26th seeing a 7ft wave from the WNW (combined energy jumping to 426), but the wind is a fresh onshore breeze, so it’ll be a lumpy, blown-out mess – that’s big enough to be expert-only, but it won’t be clean enough for anyone to enjoy.

The best of a bad bunch comes on Tuesday the 28th. Tuesday morning sees a window of clean conditions with a light offshore breeze from the SE and glassy afternoon winds. The swell is a tiny 2ft from the west, with a fairly long 9-second period, and the energy is low (56). It won’t be epic, but if you’ve got a longboard, it might be the only ridable moment in the first week with the cleanest surface.

Things stay flat or weak and windy right through to the start of August. On Sunday the 2nd of August, we get a bump to 5ft from the west with moderate energy (223), but the wind is onshore and then cross-onshore, so it’s not a goer.

Now, the only real standout – and it’s a promise, not a guarantee because it’s a long way out – is on Friday the 7th of August. The morning and afternoon both show a moderate offshore breeze from the SE, clear skies, and a clean surface. The swell is tiny, only 1.0ft from the west, but it’s a longer 9-second period, so there’s a little shape. The energy is weak (23), but with clean, offshore conditions, it’s the only time I’d even look at the water. For a river break like Crantock, that’s often a good combo when there’s any swell. Crowds are listed as "often," so you won’t be alone, but for a break that’s "fairly consistent," a 16-day outlook with one tiny, clean window is a rough go.

For the rest of it, if you’re a kite surfer, the strong onshore winds on the bigger days (like Sunday the 26th) will look interesting, but for a paddle surfer? Leave the board at home.

Rusty.

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