Strandhill Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here. Let's be straight with you about the Sligo coast for the next couple of weeks. We've got one main spot on the radar, Strandhill, and it's a bit of a mixed bag. There's a decent run of waves early next week (the 24th & 25th) and a potentially solid pulse the following Thursday (the 27th), but you'll have to work for it.

The first few days are looking pretty sad, to be honest. Friday the 21st has some small, weak swell around 3ft from the northwest, but it's chopped up by a moderate north-northeast breeze, making it a mess. The energy is weak (88), and it stays that way through the weekend. Saturday the 22nd drops off to 1ft, and Sunday the 23rd is barely a ripple at 0.6ft to 1ft with a glassy morning but no power behind it. You'd be better off checking the tide pools.

Now, Monday the 24th is where things start to get interesting. The swell fills in a touch to 4ft from the west-northwest, but the big stories are the light offshore southeast wind and a jump in energy to moderate (265). It’s clean, it’s got a bit of push, and it's the first real chance for a wave. The forecast is saying "good surf conditions," so get on it. Tuesday the 25th keeps that clean vibe but the swell backs down to 3ft. Still rideable, but the energy drops (116). There's a bit of a lull on Wednesday the 26th as the swell fades right off.

Then we get to Thursday the 27th of August. This is the standout of the window. The swell jumps up to 7ft from the west-northwest with strong energy (574). The morning looks spot on with a light offshore southeast airflow and clean conditions. This is proper surf. That said, 7ft is getting big and will be a handful for less experienced surfers. The afternoon turns a bit iffy with light rain and a northwest breeze swinging onshore, so the morning session is the one. A week out, this one is promising but not locked in. Keep an eye on it.

After that, it gets pretty average again. Friday the 28th is blown out with a fresh westerly-northwesterly wind and messy waves. Saturday the 29th has a small clean-ish 4ft swell from the west in the morning, but it's nothing special. The next real highlight is Monday the 31st of August. The swell builds to 6ft from the west with strong energy (561). The morning is crossed up, but the afternoon goes glassy. That’s a solid call for a clean, powerful session on a beach break, though the long period (8 seconds) might make it wall up a bit. It’s another standout, weigh it up.

The first week of September looks poor. The swell fades out completely and the wind is all over the shop. From the 1st to the 5th, we're looking at small, weak, and mostly choppy conditions. Don't get your hopes up.

Water temp is sitting at 62°, which is about a touch warmer than the long-term average, so it'll feel pretty comfortable in a spring suit.

All in all, the next couple of weeks has two clear windows: Monday the 24th for a cleaner, smaller option, and Thursday the 27th of August for the bigger, more powerful swell. The 31st of August is a good back-up if you miss the others. The rest is pretty much a write-off.

Rusty.

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