East Runton Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a hard look at what’s on offer for East Runton over the next couple of weeks. I’ll be straight with you – it’s a grim stretch ahead. We’re looking at day after day of poor surf conditions with barely a glimmer of hope. There’s a real dry spell here, with no worthwhile waves for most of the period. The first solid recommendation isn’t until nearly two weeks out, so be prepared for a long wait.

The pattern is dominated by onshore and cross-onshore winds, mostly from the NE and NNE, with fresh breezes keeping everything messy. The swell is tiny for the first week, with heights barely breaking 2 feet and short, weak periods of 3 to 6 seconds. The combined swell energy is practically non-existent, often below 100 (like 9 on the 10th) – that’s just dead water. The only notable window appears right at the back end, around the 25th of July.

Let’s start from the beginning. From Friday the 10th through to Thursday the 23rd, we’re looking at a solid two-week gap of no-good surf. From the 10th to the 14th, it’s all tiny, weak, onshore slop with wind speeds between 9 and 19 mph – it’s a write-off. Even when the swell bumps up a little around the 15th to the 19th, the wind just won’t cooperate. The waves stay messy and lumpy, with cross-onshore winds and choppy faces. The water temperature is 65°F on the 10th, and with an anomaly of plus 6°F, that’s much warmer than normal for this time of year – a real surprise for the Norfolk coast.

It gets a bit cruel around the 20th and 21st of July. The swell finally shows some size, hitting 5 to 6 feet from the N, with moderate wave energy in the 187 to 233 range. But the wind is straight onshore from the NNE at 19 mph, turning what could be a fun day into a blown-out mess. The water temperature is about average for the season then. This kind of wind and swell setup at a beach break like East Runton really looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

There is one very late bright spot. The standout in this whole outlook is the morning of Saturday, the 25th of July, and it’s a real curveball. We get a tiny 1 foot swell from the N, with a period of 7 seconds. That’s not much on paper, but the wind shifts to a light to moderate breeze from the SE at 16 mph, coming cross-offshore. The data calls it “clean,” and for a beginner spot like East Runton known for being fairly consistent with an optimum swell from the NNE, this is the only window where the stars align for a clean, rideable wave. It won’t be big, but it’ll be smooth. The combined energy is a weak 20, so it’s not powerful, but it’s clean. The earlier part of that Saturday afternoon stays clean with a little more size (2 feet) but a stronger 19 mph SE wind. However, later in the day, the crowds can be a thing to consider.

That’s the long and short of it. A lot of flat and windy days, then one brief, clean moment.

Rusty.

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