Eastbourne Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab a coffee and settle in, I’m lookin’ right up the coast for you. This is your local surf report from Rusty.

First up, the big picture: it’s a tough stretch for Eastbourne. We’ve got a long, flat spell ahead with barely a ripple to get excited about for the first week and a half. The water is sitting at 66°F right now, which is a massive 7°F warmer than normal for this time of year – that’s proper unusual, like summer has overstayed its welcome. But don’t let that warm water fool ya; the surf is a ghost town.

From Thursday the 9th of July all the way through to about the 18th, it’s a write-off. The swell energy is weak, mostly reading single digits or low teens (0 to 18), and the wind is a mess. We’ve got fresh to strong breezes out of the east and northeast, chopping everything up. It’s cross-shore or cross-onshore, making it lumpy, messy, and just plain ugly. There’s not a single standout session in that whole first block.

Around the 17th and 18th of July, we start to see a shift. The wind finally turns clean – offshore and cross-offshore from the northwest and north-northwest. The waves are still tiny though, only 0.7ft to 1.0ft, with a combined energy of just 4 to 10. It’s clean, but it’s flat. For a beginner, those tiny, clean waves on the 18th morning might be worth a paddle on a longboard, but don’t expect any real power.

The real glimmer, and I mean the *only* glimmer, comes on Thursday the 23rd of July morning. The wind is fresh from the north at 19 mph, and it’s clean. The swell is still only 1ft from the west-southwest with a short period of 4 seconds, and the combined energy is a weak 9. It’s not gonna blow your mind, but after two weeks of nothing, clean ankle-to-knee-high waves are a welcome sight. This is the only period I’d even consider waxing the board for. Eastbourne is a sheltered, inconsistent beginner spot, and when the swell is this small, it can be frustrating. Crowds are a possibility here, but with surf this tiny, it’s more likely you’ll have the place to yourself.

If you’re a kite surfer, honestly, the whole first week with those strong cross-shore winds and 2ft to 3ft lumpy chop on the 12th and 13th might be more interesting than a paddle.

Bottom line: Don’t hold your breath. The first 10 days are a total loss. The 23rd of July morning is your best bet, but it’s a long way off and the forecast is shaky. Sometimes it just stays poor in this area, and this is one of those times.

Rusty.

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