Fistral-North Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s cooking for the next couple of weeks.

It’s a pretty grim start for Fistral-North, I’m not gonna lie. The first week and a half is basically a write-off for any decent surf. We’ve got a long stretch of small, weak, and messy conditions. The swell is tiny, often around 0.7ft to 3ft, and the period is short, meaning the waves have no real push. The wind is all over the place, either cross-shore or onshore, making it bumpy. You’re looking at a lot of days with “poor surf conditions” and zero scores. The combined swell energy is laughable, sitting in the weak range (52 to 60) for the first few days, and barely climbing into the low triple digits later. It’s a waiting game.

The first real flicker of hope shows up on the morning of Friday, the 24th of July. The wind switches to a strong cross-off from the ESE at 28 mph, which is a bit wild, but it keeps the surface clean. The swell picks up a little to 2ft from the W with a 12-second period, and the combined energy jumps to 109. It’s still not a classic, but it’s a step in the right direction.

The afternoon of Friday, the 24th, things get a bit more interesting. We get a proper offshore wind from the SE at 12 mph and the swell is 2ft from the WNW (10 seconds). The combined energy hits 145, moving into moderate territory. It’s clean, but the conditions are still "very ordinary."

Then, Saturday the 25th of July is the standout session on offer. The morning is clean with a light cross-off breeze from the ESE, and the swell is 3ft from the W with a 7-second period. The combined energy is 104. But the real highlight is the Saturday afternoon. The wind goes glassy, dropping to 3 mph from the ENE. Flat calm, no breeze. The waves are 3ft from the W, and the energy is 127. It’s glassy and clean. For a beach break setup, that’s about as good as it gets for this run. The water temperature is 65°F, which is a whopping 5°F above normal for the time of year – much warmer than you’d expect. It’ll feel nice.

Now, after that brief window, it gets a bit wild again. The swell builds significantly through the end of the month. By Monday the 27th of July, we’re looking at 7ft swell from the W with a combined energy of 702 – that’s strong wave energy. The wind is a fresh cross-off from the S at 22 mph, so it’s clean but the size is getting serious. That’s expert territory. Tuesday the 28th holds similar size (6ft) and very strong energy (687), but the wind swings cross-shore and turns lumpy. It’s not a good look for a paddle.

In short: The surf is flat and poor for a solid week and a half. Your best bet is the Saturday afternoon, 25th of July at Fistral-North, when the glassy wind and clean 3ft swell from the W will give you the best chance of a fun, uncrowded session. The later big swell (over 8ft) from the 27th is for experts only, and the wind might ruin it anyway.

Rusty.

Read more