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Surf Forecasts:
The Bowl surfForecast / Scot – North Coast / UK
16 Day Weather and Surf, issued 12 am Monday 18 May 2026 BSTForecast update in hr min s Forecast update imminent
The Bowl surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's The Bowl sea temperature is
8.8° C
(Which is normal for this time of year)Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Bowl this week:
The surf forecast for The Bowl over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (May 20) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 16s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Bowl in the next 16 days are 1.5m 12s and forecast to arrive on Monday (May 18) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.6m 6s period and expected on Tuesday (May 19) at 4PM.
| Wave Type | Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Wed 20th May) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 16s |
| Best Surf | 10AM (Wed 20th May) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Mon 18th May) | 5ft (1.5m) 12s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Bowl over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 10mm), heaviest on Wed afternoon. Very mild (max 12°C on Mon afternoon, min 7°C on Sun night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the SE on Tue morning, calm by Wed morning). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Thu morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Fri morning, min 9°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Monday 18 | Tuesday 19 | Wednesday 20 | Thursday 21 | Friday 22 | Saturday 23 | Sunday 24 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
W 12 | W 11 | W 10 | W 10 | W 9 | WNW 9 | W 16 | W 14 | W 13 | W 12 | W 11 | W 7 | W 10 | W 13 | W 12 | W 6 | W 5 | W 6 | W 9 | WNW 6 | W 9 | |
596 | 396 | 244 | 154 | 61 | 26 | 301 | 405 | 212 | 327 | 154 | 65 | 73 | 86 | 73 | 39 | 53 | 22 | 15 | 11 | 6 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | |
High Tide | 10:12AM5.06m | 10:33PM5.11m | 11:04AM4.93m | 11:20PM5.00m | 12:01PM4.73m | 00:11AM4.84m | 1:04PM4.50m | 1:08AM4.65m | 2:15PM4.30m | 2:13AM4.48m | 3:29PM4.18m | 3:24AM4.38m | 4:42PM4.15m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 4:05AM1.11m | 4:26PM1.18m | 4:52AM1.10m | 5:12PM1.40m | 5:42AM1.19m | 6:01PM1.69m | 6:35AM1.35m | 6:54PM2.00m | 7:36AM1.54m | 7:56PM2.27m | 8:45AM1.70m | 9:09PM2.45m | 10:02AM1.79m | 10:28PM2.48m | |||||||
 |  |  |  | |  |  | | | | |  | | | | |  | | | | | |
 | 4:41 | — | — | 4:39 | — | — | 4:37 | — | — | 4:35 | — | — | 4:33 | — | — | 4:31 | — | — | 4:28 | — | — |
 | — | — | 9:42 | — | — | 9:44 | — | — | 9:45 | — | — | 9:47 | — | — | 9:50 | — | — | 9:52 | — | — | 9:53 |
— | 2 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 6 | — | 3 | — | 1 | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Temp °C | 11 | 12 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 14 |
5 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 14 | 13 | 13 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 12 | W 11 | W 10 | W 10 | W 9 | WNW 9 | W 16 | W 14 | W 13 | W 12 | W 11 | W 7 | W 10 | W 13 | W 6 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | W 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 |
 kJ | 596 | 396 | 244 | 154 | 61 | 26 | 301 | 405 | 212 | 327 | 154 | 65 | 73 | 86 | 23 | 39 | 23 | 22 | 13 | 11 | 6 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 8 | N 8 | N 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | E 7 | ESE 7 | W 6 | E 6 | N 7 | W 11 | W 16 | W 10 | W 12 | SE 6 | E 6 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 |
| kJ | 53 | 50 | 35 | 22 | 12 | 6 | 28 | 17 | 31 | 3 | 4 | 58 | 5 | 17 | 73 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 15 | 6 | 6 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | W 15 | W 15 | W 13 | W 8 | N 7 | ESE 7 | N 8 | E 6 | N 7 | N 7 | SE 7 | N 6 | N 6 | N 6 | — | — | — | W 12 |
| kJ | — | — | — | 4 | 4 | 14 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 3 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | ESE 4 | SE 5 | ESE 5 | SE 6 | ESE 7 | — | W 4 | — | SSE 3 | WSW 4 | — | — | W 5 | — | W 6 | W 5 | — | — | — | ESE 2 |
| kJ | — | 11 | 98 | 87 | 159 | 96 | — | 9 | — | 2 | 17 | — | — | 35 | — | 38 | 53 | — | — | — | 1 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 9 | 34 | 34 | 443 | 82 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 12 | 278 | 17 | 63 | 303 | 170 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Scotland - North Coast | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our The Bowl surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the The Bowl Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Bowl provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Bowl can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Bowl surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Bowl) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Bowl may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Are you planning a holiday in Scotland - North Coast? If you are looking for accommodation near The Bowl, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Scotland - North Coast, consider staying in Scrabster which is 7 km (4 miles) away. Other places in and around Scotland - North Coast where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Wick which is 39 km (24 miles) away and Kirkwall, 56 km (35 miles) away.
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