Putsborough Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, let’s have a look at what Putsborough (North Devon) has lined up over the next couple of weeks. Honestly, it’s a long, frustrating run ahead. The water is sitting at 67° this morning, which is a solid 5° warmer than normal for late August – that’s pretty unusual, a real treat on the skin but not much else to get excited about right now.

For the first few days, from Tuesday the 25th all the way through to Saturday the 29th of August, it’s just tiny, weak, and messy. Swells barely scrape 0.7ft to 2ft with pathetic energy readings (10 to 81). Winds are either cross-off or cross-on, but none of it matters because there’s simply no power. The sea’s just not interested. You’re looking at a solid five-day gap with absolutely nothing worth paddling out for.

Sunday the 30th of August shows a glimmer. Early morning you’ve got a 5ft W swell arriving, period around 9 seconds, light cross-off winds from the south-southwest keeping it clean. Energy ticks up to 356 – moderate. It’s rated as marginal, but compared to the flatness before, it’s the best on offer. The swell direction is a bit off optimum for the spot (prefers WNW), so don’t expect perfection, but it’ll be rideable for the keen.

Then it gets ugly again. Monday the 31st and Tuesday the 1st of September see a big jump in size – 6ft to 8ft – but it’s all cross-shore and cross-on with howling winds. That Tuesday afternoon session shows a near gale from the southwest, energy rocketing up to 1194 (very strong) but the wind is shredding any chance of a clean wave. This setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing, honestly. Not for beginners at all; that 8ft is expert-only territory and the period around 8-10 seconds won’t help the shape on this beach.

Into the first week of September, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. Wednesday the 2nd still has lumpy cross-shore winds, but Thursday the 3rd morning brings a brief moment of clean conditions with a 4ft W swell and moderate energy (198) – surfable but very ordinary. The real standout, if you can wait, is Tuesday the 8th of September. That morning you’ve got a light SSE breeze, offshore for Putsborough, with a 3ft swell from the west, 9-second period, and energy of 125. It’s not big, but it’s clean and small enough for beginners to get amongst it. Not a classic, but the cleanest window in a bleak stretch.

The second week is rough. Wednesday the 9th of September brings another pulse of 7-7ft swell from the WSW, but with onshore winds and lumpy conditions. Energy readings are high (875-952) but the wind’s just ruining it. Period hits 11 seconds on the afternoon, which is decent groundswell, but on a beach break like Putsborough it’ll be hard to find a bank holding that straight.

Overall, don’t get your hopes up. The first real chance for a clean, rideable wave is Sunday the 30th of August early, and then maybe a small clean-up on Tuesday the 8th of September morning. The rest is wind-affected junk or flat. Stay tuned – forecasts change.

- Rusty

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