Mawgan Porth Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s break down what’s in store for Mawgan Porth.

Honestly, it’s a tough outlook for the next couple of weeks. The first real chance of any waves doesn’t pop up until Monday the 24th of August, but even then it’s barely a ripple – 0.2m (0.7ft) of swell from the WSW with a decent 13-second period behind it. The wind is offshore from the ESE at 30 km/h, so the surface will be clean, but with combined wave energy sitting at just 23 (that’s weak), you’d be scratching for anything worth paddling out for.

Tuesday the 25th is much the same story – small 0.5m (2ft) to 0.6m (2ft) swell from the west, gentle offshore in the morning, then cleaner in the afternoon as the wind drops to next to nothing. It’s surfable but very ordinary. Water temp is sitting at 18°C (65°F), which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won’t be freezing while you’re barely moving.

The rest of that first week is pretty uninspiring. Wednesday the 26th sees cross-offshore winds with tiny 0.5m (2ft) to 0.6m (2ft) swell but the period drops to 8 seconds, so it loses a lot of shape. The energy is weak (45 to 71). Thursday and Friday get a bit more size – up to 1.5m (5ft) by Friday morning and 2.4m (8ft) by the afternoon – but the wind swings onshore and it turns into a messy, blown-out mess. The energy picks up to 692 (moderate) but with poor conditions, it’s a total write-off for surfing.

The weekend of the 29th and 30th is more of the same: onshore winds, lumpy, choppy, and the swell direction is all over the shop. Nothing worth getting excited about.

We then hit a real dry spell through the beginning of September. From the 31st of August right through to the 3rd, it’s all strong or near-gale onshore winds with building but messy swell. The energy gets into the hundreds and even reaches 870 (moderate to strong) on the 2nd, but with wind like that, even the bigger 2.3m (8ft) to 2.4m (8ft) waves will be a complete washout.

The first faint glimmer of something better comes on Friday the 4th of September. We see a 1.7m (6ft) swell from the WSW with a light cross-shore wind from the north at 10 km/h. The wave energy is 424 (moderate). The conditions are marginal but it’s the best we’ve had in a while. Still, it’s not a standout.

Saturday the 5th of September brings a bigger 2.5m (8ft) to 3.0m (10ft) west swell with period up to 11 seconds. The wind is cross-onshore from the northwest, and the combined energy jumps to 1513 (strong). But the commentary suggests marginal at best, and the afternoon turns to poor with light rain and building wind. The morning could offer some bigger, lumpy waves for experienced surfers, but it’s far from clean.

Now, the one standout in this whole 16-day window hits on Monday the 7th of September. There’s a huge 7.0m (23ft) swell predicted from the west with a very long 17-second period. The combined wave energy is a massive 29596 (extremely strong). This is big, powerful groundswell. The wind is strong cross-onshore from the NW at 40 km/h, so it will look wild and messy. The forecast itself notes the swell is predicted to be too big for this break. This is only for experts, and even then, the conditions will be extremely challenging. A point break or reef would handle this energy better, but here at Mawgan Porth, a river-mouth setup, it’s going to be a giant, churning, blown-out beast. Honestly, with that wind and size, it looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The final days on the 8th of September drop back to 2.4m (8ft) to 3.0m (10ft) with a long 12-13 second period, but the wind is cross-onshore or onshore, keeping things average at best.

So to sum it up: this is a long, cruel run of poor surf. There’s almost nothing on offer until well into the second week, and even then, the only real swell of note is too big and too windy for most. The consistent takeaway here is that the wind just won’t cooperate. It’s rare to see such a persistent spell of onshore wind. We’ll have to keep an eye on the long-range – forecasts can change, but right now, Mawgan Porth is a no-go for quality waves.

Rusty.

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