Surf Forecasts:
The Cove surf forecast from 5 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 7 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 7ft (2.2m), 10s period, W swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 7 Aug, 7PM (local time) - 8ft (2.4m), 9s period, W swell with 977 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 5 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 7s period with NNE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Cove this week:
The surf forecast for The Cove over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 05) at 7AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.0m and 7s period. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Cove in the next 16 days are 2.4m 9s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 07) at 7PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.7m 4s period and expected on Friday (Aug 07) at 4AM.
| Wave Type | Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 7AM (Wed 5th Aug) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 7s |
| Best Surf | 10PM (Fri 7th Aug) | 7ft (2.2m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 7PM (Fri 7th Aug) | 8ft (2.4m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Cove over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let’s get into it. The Cove’s been pretty gutless and messy for the start of this stretch. We’ve got a long window of onshore and cross-onshore winds, and the swell’s just not showing up with any conviction. You’re looking at a few days of small, chopped-out lines until things finally start to clean up.
The first real window I see is Saturday morning, August 8th. It’s not huge, but there’s a shift to a moderate offshore breeze and the swell, while still a bit short-period, has some energy. We’re talking 5ft of WNW swell with a 9-second period. It’s clean, a bit lined up, and worth a paddle. The combined energy is moderate at 346. It’s not epic, but it’s the first proper surfable option.
Then, Tuesday morning, August 11th is the standout. This is the one to circle. The winds go light offshore from the SW, the swell bumps up a touch to 5ft from the N with a longer 10-second period, and the energy jumps to a solid 574. The comment says “very good surf conditions,” and I’d agree. The Cove is a reef, so this longer-period N swell will wrap in nicely. It’s clean, it’s got push, and it’s the best call of the whole forecast. The water temp is about average for this time of year, so nothing weird there.
After that, there’s a bit of a drop-off. Wednesday morning, August 12th is still clean with light cross-offshore winds and 4ft of N swell, but it’s a step down. The following days, the swell fades and the winds get a bit flukey. There’s a glassy morning on Thursday, August 13th, but the swell’s only 2ft, so it’s pretty marginal. Same story on Friday morning, August 14th – glassy but tiny.
The second week is pretty poor. The swell stays small, and the winds go back onshore and lumpy. From around August 17th onwards, it’s just cross-onshore junk and building wind. There’s no real saving grace there. It’s a flat, messy run to close out the window.
So, the play is clear: wait for the clean, offshore mornings. Saturday the 8th is the warm-up, Tuesday the 11th is the main event. Don’t waste your time on the rest.
Rusty
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 17mm), heaviest on Wed night. Very mild (max 16°C on Fri afternoon, min 11°C on Thu night). Mainly fresh winds. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 10mm), heaviest on Sat afternoon. Very mild (max 15°C on Sat morning, min 11°C on Sun night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the SW on Sat night, calm by Mon afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 5 | Thursday 6 | Friday 7 | Saturday 8 | Sunday 9 | Monday 10 | Tuesday 11 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 7 | NNE 8 | N 7 | N 7 | N 7 | N 7 | W 6 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | W 8 | W 9 | W 10 | W 9 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | NNW 10 | N 10 | N 10 | N 9 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 169 | 375 | 418 | 206 | 74 | 24 | 30 | 582 | 680 | 325 | 373 | 524 | 769 | 891 | 435 | 256 | 257 | 692 | 441 | 361 | 185 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross | on | cross-off | cross-off | on | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:46PM4.29m | 1:55AM4.48m | 2:44PM4.17m | 3:01AM4.28m | 3:55PM4.11m | 4:23AM4.15m | 5:15PM4.16m | 5:55AM4.19m | 6:32PM4.36m | 7:16AM4.39m | 7:36PM4.63m | 8:20AM4.63m | 8:30PM4.91m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 7:34AM1.68m | 7:47PM2.10m | 8:27AM1.89m | 8:50PM2.27m | 9:36AM2.09m | 10:15PM2.33m | 11:01AM2.17m | 11:47PM2.18m | 12:22PM2.08m | 1:01AM1.85m | 1:26PM1.88m | 1:59AM1.47m | 2:19PM1.67m | 2:49AM1.13m | |||||||
 |  |  |  | |  | | |  | | |  |  | | |  | |  | | | | |
 | 5:11 | — | — | 5:13 | — | — | 5:15 | — | — | 5:18 | — | — | 5:20 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:24 | — | — |
 | — | — | 9:28 | — | — | 9:24 | — | — | 9:22 | — | — | 9:20 | — | — | 9:17 | — | — | 9:15 | — | — | 9:13 |
mm | — | 2 | 8 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 13 |
Feels °C | 12 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 11 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 10 | E 6 | W 11 | W 10 | N 7 | N 7 | W 6 | NNE 7 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 | NNW 8 | N 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | N 8 | N 8 | NNW 10 | N 10 | N 10 | N 9 |
| kJ | 2 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 74 | 24 | 30 | 5 | 680 | 325 | 373 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 25 | 36 | 84 | 692 | 441 | 361 | 185 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | W 10 | W 11 | E 6 | W 10 | W 4 | W 9 | NNE 10 | NNE 9 | NNW 10 | NNW 9 | SE 6 | SE 7 | — | NNW 9 | NW 10 | NW 11 | W 8 | — | W 7 | WNW 8 |
| kJ | — | 2 | 9 | 1 | 17 | 9 | 28 | 9 | 8 | 18 | 16 | 1 | 2 | — | 25 | 28 | 30 | 74 | — | 66 | 45 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | NE 8 | W 10 | NNE 7 | — | N 11 | NE 9 | ESE 6 | N 8 | — | — | — | SE 6 | — | — | — | WNW 9 | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 3 | 17 | 9 | — | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 15 | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 7 | NNE 8 | N 7 | N 7 | WNW 5 | — | SSW 3 | W 9 | — | SSE 4 | S 3 | W 8 | W 9 | W 10 | W 9 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | — | W 8 | — | SE 3 |
| kJ | 169 | 375 | 418 | 206 | 20 | — | 6 | 582 | — | 14 | 5 | 524 | 769 | 891 | 435 | 256 | 257 | — | 133 | — | 3 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 16 | 1104 | 1176 | 380 | 223 | 0 | 8 | 28 | 17 | 0 | 21 | 171 | 421 | 34 | 0 | 21 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Scotland - North Coast | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the The Cove Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Cove provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Cove can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Cove 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 Cove) 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 Cove 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 Cove, 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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