Porthtowan Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, I'm Rusty. Let's have a look at what's on the cards for Porthtowan over the next couple of weeks.

Alright, first up, I gotta be straight with you – the next week and a bit is pretty grim. We're looking at a solid stretch of nothing much from the 10th right through to the 21st of August. There's hardly a wave worth paddling for, and the conditions are just messy. The wind is mostly cross-on or onshore, which is a recipe for chop and poor surf. The water temp is sitting at 66°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, but that's about the only nice thing I can say.

The first real glimmer of hope comes Wednesday morning, the 18th of August. It's still small, with a 3ft swell from the west, but the wind is a clean offshore from the ESE. The combined energy is weak (111), but at least it's clean. You'll be scratching around for little waves, but it's surfable. Then it goes quiet again.

Now, hold onto your board, because Saturday the 22nd of August is a monster. The swell is predicted to be huge – 13ft from the WNW with a period of 11 seconds. The combined energy is massive (3583). But here's the catch: the wind is a moderate cross-on breeze from the north, and the forecast actually says it's predicted to be too big for this break. This is expert-only territory, and even then, it's going to be a washing machine. The break is a beach setup, so with that much energy and cross-on wind, it’s probably more interesting for the kite surfers than paddle surfers.

The real standout, though, is Monday the 24th of August. Mark it in your calendar. We've got a really nice looking morning. The swell is a clean 3ft from the west, but the period is a very long 14 seconds – that's proper groundswell energy. The combined energy is moderate (492), and the wind is glassy – a light offshore from the SE. For a beach break, that long period might make the waves a bit straight, but with glassy conditions, it's going to be clean and have some punch. The crowd profile says "often," so don't expect to have it to yourself, but if you can get out there, it’s the best on offer by a long shot. After that, Tuesday the 25th has a 3ft west swell with an offshore ESE wind, but the energy drops off (204) and it's not as special.

So, to sum it up: the first week and a half is a write-off, then we get a massive, messy swell that's too big. The clear winner is the 24th of August morning – glassy, long-period groundswell, and clean conditions. Get on it.

Rusty.

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