The Maze (Tiree) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here again, giving you the same story in feet and miles per hour.

It’s a bit of a waiting game for the next couple of weeks. The first surf we see is a tiny, weak pulse. Wednesday the 26th of August kicks off with a 2ft west swell, but it’s got a short period of 8 seconds and the combined energy is a meagre 32. The wind is a cross-off from the NE at 12 mph, so the surface is clean, but frankly, it’s poor surf conditions. The Maze (Tiree) is a fairly consistent spot, exposed to the west, but there’s just nothing doing.

Thursday the 27th is similar, with a 2ft west swell, and the period nudges up to 9 seconds. The morning has a light offshore breeze at 6 mph, making it look clean, but the energy is still weak at 57. It’s surfable, but very ordinary. The afternoon gets a bit bumpier with a cross-off wind.

We then hit a real lull. From Friday the 28th of August right through to the morning of Sunday the 30th, the forecast is a write-off. The swell is tiny, the period is short, and the winds are messy.

Now, Sunday the 30th of August offers a tiny glimmer. The morning shows a 1ft swell from the west-southwest, but the period jumps to 10 seconds. The combined energy is still low at 61, but the wind is glassy – that’s a major positive. It’ll be clean, but you’ll be scratching for anything. The same goes for the afternoon, with a 2ft swell and glassy conditions.

Monday the 31st of August sees the swell start to build, but it gets messy. A 4ft west swell on the afternoon is accompanied by a 19 mph onshore wind, making it poor.

The first week of September is a bit of a washout. The swell gets bigger, with a 5ft west swell on Tuesday the 1st of September, but the wind is a strong cross-onshore at 25 mph, turning it into a messy, blown-out disaster. The combined energy is moderate (350), but it’s not for paddling.

Then, on Wednesday the 2nd of September, we get a second, better window. The morning has a 3ft west swell with an 8-second period. The combined energy is a low 76, but the wind is glassy.

The real action, if you can call it that, kicks off later. Thursday the 3rd of September shows a solid 6ft to 6ft west swell, with a period of 8 seconds. The combined energy climbs to 389 and then 515. But the wind is a full-on 22 mph onshore blast. It’s a disaster. The same pattern holds for Friday the 4th of September, with a 6ft west swell and a longer 11-second period, but the wind is still cross-onshore. The energy is strong at 654, but it’s a messy, choppy scene. This setup is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The best of the bunch looks like Saturday the 5th of September. The morning shows a 3ft swell from the west-northwest with a nice 11-second period. The combined energy is moderate at 253. The wind is cross. The afternoon gets a bit bigger at 4ft from the northwest, with the same period and a combined energy of 463. The wind is cross-onshore and lumpy, so the morning is the better call.

After that, it’s back to poor conditions. We get a 7ft west swell on Monday the 7th of September, with strong energy (679), but it’s cross-onshore and choppy. That’s expert territory, but the wind ruins it.

So, to sum it up: the best of a bad bunch is the morning of Sunday the 30th of August for a tiny, clean glassy wave, and the morning of Saturday the 5th of September for a slightly bigger, longer period swell. The water temperature is around 59°F, which is about normal for the time of year.

Rusty.

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