The Maze (Tiree) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking for the next couple of weeks.

Right, straight off the bat, I’ve got to be honest with you. It’s a rough stretch ahead for The Maze (Tiree). The first real chance of a wave doesn’t come until the morning of Friday, July 31st. That’s a full six days of waiting with nothing decent on offer. The week before that is a write-off – onshore winds, lumpy, choppy, messy conditions. You’d be wasting your time.

Friday morning, July 31st, we finally see a pulse of swell. Westerly swell, 6ft, with a period of 9 seconds. The energy is moderate, around 515 in the meter. Problem is, the wind is cross-shore from the SSW at 16 mph, putting a chop on the face. It’s surfable, but only just – I’d call it a marginal session at best. The afternoon cleans up a little, but still cross-shore and lumpy.

Saturday, August 1st, is the first day that gets my attention. The morning has a light ESE breeze, 6 mph, clean conditions with cross-offshore wind. The swell is small, only 3ft, and the period is short at 8 seconds, so it’s not going to have much push. Energy is weak (124). But it’s clean. That afternoon, the wind swings offshore from the ESE at 9 mph, and the swell drops to 3ft. It’s clean, but tiny. It’s a longboard or a foamie kind of day.

After that, Sunday August 2nd is flat and rainy, and Monday August 3rd brings a bit more size (5ft) but cross-onshore wind ruins it. The rest of the first week of August is a write-off again – onshore, onshore, onshore.

Now, look ahead to Saturday, August 8th. The models are showing a proper pulse of groundswell – west-southwest, 8ft, and a long period of 11 seconds. That’s a lot of energy, 1245 in the meter. That’s a powerful swell for The Maze. But – and it’s a big but – the wind is a fresh cross-onshore from the WNW at 19 mph. That’s going to make it lumpy and blown out. For experienced surfers only, and even then, it’s going to be a battle. The break is a beach and point setup, so with that long period, it might be better on the point if you can find a clean corner. The crowd situation is “sometimes” busy, so you might share it, but honestly, with that wind, it won’t be packed.

The standout in this entire 16-day window is the Saturday morning, August 1st. It’s not the biggest wave, but it’s the only time we get a clean, cross-offshore breeze with any wave at all. The water temperature is around 58°, which is about normal for this time of year – nothing unusual there.

Honestly, the rest of the month looks better for kite surfing than paddle surfing. The swell is there, but the wind is just not cooperating. Keep an eye on the forecasts, because it tends not to stay this poor for long, but for now, I’d be finding something else to do.

Rusty.

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