Porthtowan Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what Porthtowan has in store for us over the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be honest with you – it's a bit of a rough start. There's a lot of junky, wind-affected swell on the cards for the first week and a half, with the majority of days getting a thumbs down. The water is sitting at 65°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so at least you won't be freezing your bits off while you're getting frustrated.

We kick off with a bit of a dud. Wednesday the 9th sees a clean 3ft WNW swell with a 9-second period, but the NW wind is straight onshore, making for poor conditions. The combined energy is weak at 269, so it's a no-go.

Thursday the 10th is a write-off. A messy 7ft W swell in the afternoon (551 energy) is getting hammered by a cross-shore 30 km/h wind, creating a lumpy cross-chop. Not worth paddling out for.

Friday the 11th shows a glimmer of hope. The morning has a 5ft W swell with a 9-second period (372 energy) and a light offshore NNW breeze at 10 km/h. It's being called marginal, but those light offshore winds might clean it up a bit. Still, the swell is a bit short-period, so don't expect any gems.

The weekend and early next week are a mixed bag of cross-shore and onshore winds, with swell sizes between 3ft and 6ft. Nothing is really coming together. The energy is moderate, hitting 396 on Saturday afternoon, but the wind just ruins it.

Now, things get a bit more interesting if you're a patient sort. The morning of Tuesday the 15th has a 4ft W swell (202 energy) with a light cross-offshore breeze from the SSE. It's described as "surfable but very ordinary" – a one-star day. Not a standout, but probably the cleanest wave this week.

We then hit a wall of onshore wind from the north from the 16th to the 18th, with a pulse of 6ft swell (710 energy) on Wednesday the 16th, but it's all messy.

The first real standout pops up on Saturday the 19th of September. The morning sees a solid 8ft WNW swell, with an 8-second period and a big jump in energy to 881. The wind is a gentle cross-shore from the WSW. That's a lot of power, but short period, so it'll be a bit walled up and dumping. This is expert territory at that size. The afternoon is even bigger, with 8ft waves and 1012 energy, but it goes cross-onshore, so the morning is the session.

But the real one to circle on the calendar is Sunday the 20th of September. The morning is showing a thumping 10ft WNW groundswell, with a very long period of 15 seconds and a massive energy reading of 3959. Winds are light and offshore from the WNW at 10 km/h. This is a big, clean, powerful groundswell. For Porthtowan, this is going to be a serious, heavy day. The period is so long it could make the wave break a bit too straight across the beach, but with that wind, it'll be a sight to see. Only for the experienced crew. The afternoon drops off to a 4ft swell with the same direction, but still a long 14-second period (1187 energy) and light cross-onshore winds.

After that, the 21st and 22nd go back to poor onshore conditions. The final days of the 23rd and 24th of September bring a clean cross-offshore breeze from the ESE. The swell is small, around 3ft to 4ft, but the energy on the 24th morning is a respectable 313 with an 11-second period. It's a marginal call, but with that clean wind, it might be your best bet for a small, fun board.

So, the best on offer is the Saturday the 19th morning for the bigger, short-period stuff, and the Sunday the 20th morning for the long-period, powerful groundswell. That Sunday is the true standout – a proper, clean, big-wave day if you've got the skills.

Rusty.

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