
Surf Forecasts:
Thurso East surf forecast from 1 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 2 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 9s period, NNW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 2 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 8s period, NW swell with 341 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 2 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 9s period with NNW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Thurso East this week:
The surf forecast for Thurso East over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 02) at 10PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.5m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 0.7m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Thurso East in the next 16 days are 1.6m 8s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 02) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 4s period and expected on Wednesday (Aug 05) at 4AM.
| Wave Type | Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 10PM (Sun 2nd Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 9s |
| Best Surf | 10PM (Sun 2nd Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Sun 2nd Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Thurso East over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Right then, let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for the next couple of weeks. The pick of the bunch is Thurso East and it’s going to be a waiting game with a bit of a slow start.
First up, the water temp is sitting at 56°, which is bang on average for this time of year, so nothing unusual there.
We’re looking at a pretty flat, grotty run from the get-go. Saturday the 1st and Sunday the 2nd are a write-off – poor surf and cross-onshore winds making a mess of things. The good news is that by Sunday afternoon, the wind drops right back to glassy, and there’s a small 4 ft swell from the WNW, but it’s short period stuff, so nothing to get excited about.
Monday the 3rd is where it starts to get interesting. The morning brings a clean, 4 ft swell from the north with a light cross-offshore breeze, and by the afternoon, we’ve got a proper offshore wind from the SE with 4 ft of north swell. That’s going to be clean and tidy, and the combined energy’s moderate at 300 (235 in the arvo). It’s a point break, so that longer period groundswell will hold up nicely.
Tuesday the 4th is still rideable but smaller – 3 ft to 2 ft of north swell with a clean offshore wind, but wave energy drops right off to 91 and 71, so it’s weak. Still, if you’re keen, it’ll be clean.
Then we hit a big dry spell. Wednesday the 5th through to Sunday the 11th is pretty much a write-off – tiny, weak, onshore slop, and barely any energy. There’s a tiny window on Friday the 7th afternoon with a clean 3 ft west swell, but it’s marginal.
The real standout is Sunday the 9th – but it’s a big one. The morning’s got 8 ft of WNW swell, and by the afternoon it’s 10 ft of NW swell with moderate energy over 1200. That’s heavy, expert-only territory. It’s a bit cross-onshore, but if you’ve got the skills, that’s the biggest, most powerful swell of the whole forecast. Be warned – it’s a week out, so it’s promising but not locked in.
After that, we get a little respite on Monday the 10th with 4 ft of north swell, but it’s messy. Tuesday the 11th is flat again.
We’ve got another decent run starting Thursday the 13th – 7 ft of west swell, clean, but a bit short period. Then Friday the 14th is the other standout: 5 ft in the morning, 6 ft in the afternoon, both from the west-northwest with offshore winds, clean conditions, and moderate energy. That’s the best of the second week, and it’ll be glassy and clean.
The last weekend, Saturday the 15th and Sunday the 16th, gets blown out again by strong onshore winds, so it’s a no-go.
Overall, the best sessions are Monday 3rd, Sunday 9th for the big stuff, and Friday 14th for clean, solid waves. If you’re after a crowd-free point break with proper shape, keep an eye on those windows.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Sun morning. Very mild (max 14°C on Mon morning, min 11°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 32mm), heaviest during Tue afternoon. Very mild (max 13°C on Thu afternoon, min 11°C on Tue afternoon). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the NW on Thu morning, calm by Thu night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Saturday 1 | Sunday 2 | Monday 3 | Tuesday 4 | Wednesday 5 | Thursday 6 | Friday 7 | |||||||||||||||
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) | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | N 9 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | W 11 | NNE 5 | N 6 | N 6 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
92 | 122 | 147 | 341 | 192 | 337 | 238 | 181 | 108 | 61 | 58 | 41 | 18 | 18 | 10 | 30 | 47 | 27 | 42 | 60 | 73 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | off | off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | off | cross-on | off |
High Tide | 11:14AM4.61m | 11:15PM4.95m | 11:46AM4.59m | 11:48PM4.91m | 12:20PM4.52m | 00:23AM4.81m | 12:59PM4.42m | 1:04AM4.67m | 1:46PM4.29m | 1:55AM4.48m | 2:44PM4.17m | 3:01AM4.28m | 3:55PM4.11m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 5:10PM1.63m | 5:36AM1.32m | 5:43PM1.68m | 6:12AM1.38m | 6:19PM1.78m | 6:50AM1.50m | 6:59PM1.93m | 7:34AM1.68m | 7:47PM2.10m | 8:27AM1.89m | 8:50PM2.27m | 9:36AM2.09m | 10:15PM2.33m | ||||||||
5:01 | — | — | 5:03 | — | — | 5:05 | — | — | 5:07 | — | — | 5:11 | — | — | 5:13 | — | — | 5:15 | — | — | |
— | — | 9:36 | — | — | 9:34 | — | — | 9:31 | — | — | 9:29 | — | — | 9:27 | — | — | 9:24 | — | — | 9:22 | |
mm | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 5 |
Temp °C | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 13 |
Feels °C | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 14 | 11 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | — | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 | N 9 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | N 5 | W 10 | W 10 | N 6 | W 9 | W 9 | W 9 |
92 | 122 | 147 | — | 192 | 337 | 238 | 181 | 108 | 61 | 58 | 41 | 18 | 18 | 4 | 8 | 18 | 27 | 42 | 60 | 73 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 11 | W 10 | WNW 9 | — | WNW 8 | WNW 7 | WNW 7 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | W 9 | WNW 7 | WNW 7 | N 4 | W 10 | N 7 | W 6 | SE 5 | W 10 | NNW 6 | N 6 | NNE 6 |
2 | 2 | 16 | — | 130 | 55 | 18 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 13 | 7 | 4 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 11 | — | — | — | NW 10 | W 10 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | NW 6 | W 9 | W 9 | NW 7 | NW 6 | W 11 | W 6 | NW 6 | NE 7 | NE 7 | E 7 | N 9 |
2 | — | — | — | 16 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | NW 8 | — | — | ESE 2 | SE 4 | SE 3 | ESE 3 | E 7 | E 4 | E 4 | E 6 | E 4 | NNE 5 | N 6 | NNW 4 | NNW 4 | — | SE 2 |
60 | 50 | 48 | 341 | — | — | 1 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 25 | 12 | 14 | 25 | 9 | 30 | 47 | 3 | 1 | — | 1 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 819 | 836 | 54 | 29 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 8 | 419 | 286 | 255 | 100 | 359 | 783 | 646 | 29 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Scotland - North Coast | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)
Latest Updates
Information about the Thurso East Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Thurso East provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Thurso East can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Thurso East 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 (Thurso East) 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 Thurso East 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 Thurso East, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Scotland - North Coast, consider staying in Scrabster which is 2 km (1 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 31 km (19 miles) away and Kirkwall, 52 km (32 miles) away.











