Port Isaac Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s going on around Port Isaac. I’ll be straight with you – this is a tough stretch. We’re looking at a solid 16-day window, but the surf is small and the wind is all over the place, so there’s no real standout to chase. The first recommendation isn’t for a good wave, but because the overall pattern is so quiet, I’ll walk you through the whole period.

The whole run starts with Sunday, the 19th of July, and it’s a flat start. Tiny 2ft swell from the NNW with a short 5-second period, and the combined energy is a weak 19. The morning has a light offshore from the SSE, so it’s clean, but there’s simply no push. That afternoon it goes cross-onshore, and it’s still poor. Monday is the same story – 1ft and 2ft, clean in the morning with an easterly cross-offshore, but the swell is barely there. The energy is in the teens. Tuesday sees a long-period 10-second groundswell from the west, but it’s only 1.0ft – that’s a tease. The combined energy is 31, so it’s weak, and the wind is mostly cross-on or onshore.

Wednesday the 22nd and Thursday the 23rd are a write-off. The wind is howling from the north at 15 mph, making a mess of the tiny 2ft to 3ft swell. That’s a moderate cross-onshore breeze, and the fetch is killing any chance of a clean wave. Friday and Saturday the 24th and 25th are even worse – the swell drops to 0.7ft. The energy falls to single digits. It’s basically a lake. The wind is cross-on or onshore.

Then we get a little bump on Sunday the 26th of July. The swell picks up to 3ft in the morning and 4ft in the afternoon from the WNW, with a 6-second period. Combined energy hits 69 and 98 – still weak, but it’s the most movement we’ve seen. Problem is, the wind is a fresh 19 mph cross-onshore. That’s lumpy and messy. Not a day for a paddle. Monday the 27th keeps the 3ft swell going, and the energy gets into moderate territory at 132 in the afternoon. The wind is still cross-onshore though, and the wave comment says “poor surf conditions.” It’s not a winner.

The most interesting pulse comes on Tuesday the 28th of July. The swell jumps to 5ft from the NNW with a 7-second period. The combined energy spikes to 422 – that’s strong energy. That’s the biggest swell of the window. But the wind is onshore from the NNW in the morning, and cross-onshore in the afternoon. That 5ft is right at the edge of being too much for beginners, and with that onshore wind, it’s going to be a choppy, shut-down mess. This is the kind of setup that’s more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. The spot is a fairly exposed beach, and that swell direction (NNW) is not the optimum WNW for Port Isaac.

After that, it fades back to 3ft on Wednesday the 29th, then 2ft through the end of the month. The last few days of July and into August see some clean conditions with an ESE cross-offshore wind on Friday the 31st, but the swell is only 2ft to 3ft and the period is short at 6 seconds. The energy is 83. It’s clean, but tiny. The first of August has a 3ft WNW swell with moderate energy (110), but the wind is cross-shore, so it’s choppy. The best-looking day for clean conditions might be the afternoon of the 1st of August with a 19 mph SW cross-offshore wind, but the swell is only 2ft. That’s a long way off for a tiny wave.

Honestly, across the whole 16 days, there’s no single session that stands out as a “go now” moment. The wind is almost always wrong, and the swell is either too small or poorly directed. The biggest day (5ft on the 28th) is ruined by onshore wind. If you’re desperate, the cleanest options are the tiny cross-offshore days at the end of July and the start of August, but don’t expect much more than a knee-high ripple.

Rusty.

Read more