Thurso East Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right then, let’s have a look at what’s on offer for Thurso East over the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, the first week is a bit of a tough watch. We’ve got a real flat spell to kick things off. From Wednesday the 26th right through to the end of August, the swell is tiny, mostly under 2 feet, and the wind is all over the place. There’s nothing worth paddling out for. The combined wave energy is weak, hanging around 19 to 75, so you’re not getting any push. The water temp is sitting at 57°, which is pretty much bang on for this time of year, so no surprises there.

The first glimmer of hope comes right at the end of the first week on Sunday the 30th afternoon. We get a glassy surface with a little 3-foot pulse from the north, but it’s still only scoring as ordinary. Not enough to get excited about.

Then we hit a bit of a gap. Monday and Tuesday stay poor, with the wind turning onshore and choppy. The real action doesn’t start to build until the 1st of September. Tuesday morning sees a clean 3-foot from the west with moderate offshore wind, but the energy is still only moderate at 150. It’s a step up, but still not the main event.

The standout for the entire forecast period is Friday the 4th of September. Friday morning looks absolutely pumping. We’ve got a solid 10-foot swell from the west, with a moderate offshore wind from the SSE, making it clean. The combined wave energy is a strong 952, which is proper power. This is a big groundswell for a point break like Thurso East, and with the offshore wind, it’s going to be lined up and holding shape. The only catch is that at 10 feet, this is strictly for experts. If you’re not comfortable with heavy waves, sit this one out. The afternoon on the 4th gets messy with onshore wind, so you want to be on it early.

Now, Saturday the 5th sees a massive spike in swell, hitting 18 feet from the west-northwest with a period of 13 seconds. The wave energy is a whopping 9247, but it’s blown out by a strong cross-onshore breeze. That’s not a surf day; that’s a kite-surfing day, or just a day to watch from the cliff.

Sunday the 6th of September offers another good window. The afternoon looks the pick, with a 12-foot swell from the north-northwest and a long 13-second period. The wind goes offshore from the east-southeast, and it’s clean. The energy is huge at 6342. This is powerful, consistent groundswell, but again, it’s big and for experts only. The long period will make for long, lully sets, which is great for getting out the back, but it could make the waves close out a bit on a beach break. At a point like Thurso, it should be a dream.

After that, the swell drops back through Monday and Tuesday, but the 8th of September offers a fun, smaller day. Tuesday afternoon brings a 5-foot swell from the north, clean with a light cross-offshore breeze from the east. The energy is a moderate 384, and the conditions look good for a wider range of surfers, though it’s still solid.

The 9th and 10th of September see the swell fading back to small, messy conditions, so the window of opportunity is really focused on the first week of September.

In short, the best bet is the morning of Friday the 4th of September for the best combination of size and clean conditions. The afternoon of Sunday the 6th is also a massive, powerful swell, but it’s for experts only. There’s a lot of building energy and a few windows of clean wind, but you have to be ready for the size.

Rusty.

Read more