Salcombe Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I gotta be straight with you: Salcombe is going through a rough patch. The next week and a half is mostly a write-off, but there’s a glimmer of hope right at the very end of the window if you're patient.

Right now, the combined swell energy is weak, sitting at just 88, with a tiny 2ft wind swell from the west. The water temperature is about average for this time of year, but with a moderate cross-offshore breeze and rain showers, it’s just not worth paddling out. The whole first week is a mess of poor surf conditions. You’ll see small, short-period swell on the 20th, but a 19 mph cross-off wind and a combined energy of 575 makes it bumpy, not fun.

There’s a long gap of flat, choppy days. The 21st of August offers a brief tease – Friday afternoon sees a gentle offshore wind from the NE with a clean 3ft of swell, but it’s weak at 97 energy. For the next several days, the wind is all wrong, and the swell drops to almost nothing. We’re looking at 1ft dribble with cross-shore and onshore winds until around the 25th.

Things start to shift on the 26th of August. The combined energy jumps to 376, but the 5ft swell is from the SW with a short 8-second period and a cross-shore wind, so it’s still sloppy. The 27th afternoon is interesting: 8ft from the W at 10 seconds, with a clean cross-offshore wind from the WSW. The energy hits 1079 (moderate) and the score finally climbs to a 1, but it's still tagged as marginal. That's the first real hint of something better.

Then we get to the absolute standout. Friday morning, the 28th of August. Salcombe gets a solid 5ft of west swell (8 seconds) with a clean, moderate offshore wind from the WNW. The energy is 519 (moderate) and the score hits a 2. The offshore wind will make for clean, peelable waves. It's not huge, but after this drought, it’ll feel like a gift. This is the best on offer in the whole outlook.

After that, it gets a bit mixed again. The 30th and 31st have some decent-sized swell (up to 12ft on the 31st), with a 10-second period and offshore winds, but the energy numbers are huge (2250 on the 31st) and the conditions are still tagged as marginal. That’s big, raw power, but the wind is fresh, so it'll be a bumpy, challenging session – more for experts.

Tuesday the 1st of September still has good size (8ft) and clean-ish offshore winds, but again, the score is marginal. The window closes on the 2nd with a near-gale blowing, which will absolutely ruin any chance of a wave.

So, to wrap it up: it’s a flat start, a long gap of poor conditions, one clean morning on the 28th of August that’s the clear winner, and then some big but messy power towards the end of the first week of September. Keep your eyes on the 28th.

Rusty.

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