Salcombe Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, grab a coffee, let’s look at this next stretch. To be honest, the next couple of weeks are going to test your patience. We’ve got a lot of small, weak, and messy days ahead before anything remotely rideable shows up.

Right off the bat, the surf is almost non-existent. The 18th and 19th are flat, with waves barely cracking the 0.3ft to 4ft mark. The energy is weak (11 to 221), and the wind isn't doing us any favors. It’s a lot of cross-offshore breeze, which at least keeps it clean, but there’s just nothing to push you around. The 20th sees the swell bump up to around 6ft, but the energy jumps to 501, which is moderate. The problem is it's still crossed off and messy, so while the size is there, the quality isn't. It’s just not worth paddling out for that kind of drifty mess.

Then we hit a dead zone. From the 21st through the 25th, it’s mostly tiny. Heights hover between 1ft and 3ft, the energy drops to weak two-digit numbers, and you’ll see light winds and even some glassy conditions. Salcombe (Kingsbridge) is a sheltered spot, and the water temp won't be that different from average for this time of year, but it’s flat. There’s nothing breaking, so you’ll be checking the charts more than the horizon. It’s a stretch of several days with no real options.

The 26th and 27th offer a glimmer. We’ve got 3ft to 4ft waves with moderate energy (183, 101), still small but with a better 8-second period and a clean cross-off breeze. It’s not a day to get excited about, but it might be enough for a longboard if you're desperate. The period is short, though, so it'll be a bit crumbly.

Just when you think it's coming back, the 28th throws a curveball with a short period swell that is only 5 to 6 seconds. That’s just wind chop.

Finally, as we head towards the end of the month, it gets interesting but not for paddle surfing. The 29th and 30th see a bigger swell roll in, reaching 6ft and 5ft, with moderate to strong energy (346). But the wind is cross-onshore and choppy, absolutely killing any chance of clean surf. By the 31st, the swell jumps to 8ft, but it's still cross-onshore, messy, and lumpy.

The one date that stands out is the 1st of September. The energy is massive, 1011 and 923, and the swell is still a solid 7ft to 8ft, but the period is a middling 10 seconds. However, the wind is cross and cross-on, creating lumpy, cross-chop. It’s big but not clean. This looks more like a day for the kitesurfers to have a field day, not for us.

Looking ahead, the one real standout in this whole 16-day window is the morning of the 2nd of September. It’s over a week away, so treat it with caution, but the models are showing a solid 7ft swell, again from the WSW, with a 10-second period and a nice, clean cross-offshore breeze from the NNW. The wave energy is strong, at 852. This is the one time the stars might align. It’ll be powerful, and with that size, it's expert territory only. If it gets too big, it might be too much for the beginners, but for the rest of us, it’s the one to keep an eye on.

So, hold tight. The surf is just not there for the vast majority of this forecast. The 2nd of September morning is the one to circle on the calendar, but it’s a promise, not a guarantee.

Rusty.

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