Surf Forecasts:
Inch Reefs surf forecast from 30 Aug 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 3 Sep, 7PM (local time) - 21ft (6.5m), 13s period, WNW swell with 14,002 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Inch Reefs this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Inch Reefs in the next 16 days are 6.5m 13s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 03) at 7PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 5.5m 13s period and expected on Friday (Sep 04) at 1AM.
| Wave Type | Time (IST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 7PM (Thu 3rd Sep) | 21ft (6.5m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Inch Reefs over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, this is Rusty. I’ve been staring at the charts for Inch Reefs and, well, it’s a rough run for the next couple of weeks. There’s a lot of swell on offer, but the wind is just about always on it or cross-onshore, ruining the chances. The water temperature is 64°F at the moment, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so that’s one small comfort if you’re getting in the water anyway.
The outlook starts with nothing surfable today, Saturday the 29th of August. There’s a 3ft SW swell (170 combined energy), but it’s a cross-on WNW breeze, so it’s choppy and messy. Not worth it.
Sunday the 30th looks a bit bigger, with swell building to 6ft to 7ft from the WSW (combined energy hitting 606 to 675), but the wind is onshore or cross-onshore, and there’s a risk of thunderstorms. The comments say marginal at best. Monday the 31st stays similar – 5ft to 5ft WSW swell, but cross-onshore wind keeps it choppy and poor.
Tuesday the 1st of September drops off a little to 5ft from the west, with a shorter period of 8 seconds and light to moderate cross-onshore wind. Still poor. Wednesday the 2nd bumps up to 8ft and 8ft from the WSW, but with a shorter period of 8 seconds and onshore wind, it’s just a messy, poor wave. Thursday the 3rd sees a big jump – 15ft to 18ft from the west, with a period of 10 to 12 seconds and combined energy rocketing to 3994 and 9087. That’s some serious power, but it’s a fresh cross-onshore wind, making it lumpy and dangerous. This is expert-only territory, and even then, the wind is against it.
From Friday the 4th, the swell collapses to just 1ft from the SW with a long 14-second period, but the wind is fresh cross-onshore, so it’s flat and choppy at the same time. The next few days stay poor – Saturday the 5th brings back 6ft to 6ft (WSW) with onshore wind, and Sunday the 6th has 8ft to 10ft (WSW) with cross-onshore wind and moderate chop. The combined energy is up to 1733 by Sunday afternoon, but it’s still not clean.
Monday the 7th and Tuesday the 8th see strong winds – 25 mph from the WNW and W – making it messy with 8ft and 4ft swell. The whole second week is a write-off for paddle surfing, honestly. There’s a lot of energy, but the wind is just no good. If you’re into kite surfing, the set-up with significant swell, poor quality, and strong cross-onshore winds starting Thursday the 3rd and through the 7th and 8th might look interesting for kiting, but not for a surfer.
The only real standout comes on Thursday the 10th of September. The morning has a small 3ft WSW swell with a very long 15-second period, and a light cross-offshore ESE wind. The combined energy is still 670, and the forecast says “expect very good surf conditions.” That’s clean, with good shape potential from that long-period groundswell. The afternoon of the 10th is a different story – the swell jumps to 12ft from the west with a 13-second period, and combined energy hits 3988. The wind is cross-offshore from the SE, and the forecast says it’s “too big for this break.” That’s a shame, because it would be clean. The morning session on the 10th is your best bet across the whole 16 days, but it’s a long way out, so keep an eye on it.
A couple of days later, Saturday the 12th of September has a similar situation – 12ft WSW swell with a long period of 11 to 12 seconds, and a cross-offshore wind in the morning. But again, the forecast says it’s too big for Inch Reefs. The afternoon turns into a near gale cross-shore, so no good.
Overall, it’s a frustrating outlook. The forecast can change, and it tends not to stay this poor for long, so stay hopeful. But right now, the only session with a real chance of being a good one is the morning of Thursday the 10th of September.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 11mm), heaviest on Sat night. Very mild (max 18°C on Tue morning, min 14°C on Sun night). Mainly fresh winds. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 11mm), heaviest on Tue night. Very mild (max 19°C on Wed afternoon, min 14°C on Thu night). Mainly fresh winds. | |||||||||||||||||||
Sat 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SW 9 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | W 10 | W 9 | WSW 6 | W 8 | W 8 | SW 7 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | W 10 | W 12 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 |
Wave Graph | ||||||||||||||||||||
159 | 290 | 606 | 675 | 826 | 499 | 380 | 165 | 216 | 223 | 434 | 723 | 740 | 951 | 3940 | 9031 | 58 | 53 | 53 | 51 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | on | on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 6:18PM3.53m | 6:42AM3.40m | 6:51PM3.52m | 7:15AM3.39m | 7:26PM3.45m | 7:51AM3.31m | 8:05PM3.30m | 8:30AM3.17m | 8:48PM3.10m | 9:16AM2.98m | 9:42PM2.86m | 10:15AM2.79m | 10:54PM2.65m | |||||||
Low Tide | 00:24AM0.07m | 12:35PM0.26m | 00:55AM0.08m | 1:08PM0.28m | 1:29AM0.17m | 1:45PM0.37m | 2:06AM0.33m | 2:25PM0.52m | 2:49AM0.55m | 3:14PM0.71m | 3:42AM0.81m | 4:19PM0.92m | ||||||||
— | — | 6:47 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | |
8:35 | — | — | 8:32 | — | — | 8:30 | — | — | 8:28 | — | — | 8:25 | — | — | 8:23 | — | — | 8:21 | — | |
mm | — | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 8 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 18 |
Feels °C | 15 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 10 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 9 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | W 10 | NNW 7 | W 8 | W 8 | W 8 | WNW 8 | SSW 16 | SW 15 | SSW 15 | N 11 | SW 15 | SW 15 | SW 14 | WNW 11 | WNW 10 |
159 | 290 | 606 | 675 | 826 | 499 | 147 | 109 | 216 | 223 | 113 | 25 | 37 | 21 | 38 | 56 | 58 | 53 | 2527 | 917 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 6 | N 7 | N 6 | N 6 | — | NNW 7 | — | NNW 7 | NNW 7 | N 7 | SSW 16 | N 9 | N 9 | N 12 | SW 15 | N 11 | — | — | SW 14 | N 9 |
7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | — | 208 | — | 57 | 16 | 8 | 25 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 54 | 38 | — | — | 53 | 158 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 8 | NNW 7 | NNW 6 | NW 6 | — | — | — | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 17 | N 6 | SW 20 | N 9 | N 8 | — | — | — | — | — | SW 14 |
14 | 5 | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | 13 | 12 | 12 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | 51 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 4 | — | — | — | NW 7 | — | W 9 | WSW 6 | — | — | SW 7 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | W 10 | W 12 | WNW 13 | WNW 12 | — | — |
11 | — | — | — | 373 | — | 380 | 165 | — | — | 434 | 723 | 740 | 951 | 3940 | 9031 | 10706 | 4821 | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 178 | 14 | 14 | 245 | 357 | 565 | 11 | 243 | 14 | 27 | 15 | 1060 | 406 | 575 | 878 | 565 | 565 | 634 | 367 | 11 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Kerry | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Inch Reefs Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Inch Reefs provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Inch Reefs can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Inch Reefs 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 (Inch Reefs) 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 Inch Reefs 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 Kerry? If you are looking for accommodation near Inch Reefs, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Kerry, consider staying in Fenit which is 18 km (11 miles) away. Other places in and around Kerry where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Tra Li which is 24 km (15 miles) away, Valentia, Bantry and Foynes.











