Surf Forecasts:
Thurso Reef surf forecast from 12 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 13 Sep, 1AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 12s period, WNW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 20 Sep, 1AM (local time) - 25ft (7.5m), 14s period, W swell with 21,874 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 13 Sep, 1AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 12s period with WNW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Thurso Reef this week:
The surf forecast for Thurso Reef over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 13) at 1AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 3.0m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 2.2m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Thurso Reef in the next 16 days are 7.5m 14s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 20) at 1AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.9m 4s period and expected on Friday (Sep 18) at 10PM.
| Wave Type | Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1AM (Sun 13th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 1AM (Sun 13th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 12s |
| Most Powerful | 1AM (Sun 20th Sep) | 25ft (7.5m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Thurso Reef over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, Rusty here, breaking down the 16-day picture.
We’ve got a clean run starting this Sunday, September 13th. Not much to get excited about on Saturday the 12th – a 3.5m WNW swell hits Thurso Reef with 40 km/h cross-off winds, energy at 3441, but the swell is too big for the reef. Tough session even for the experienced.
Sunday morning the 13th is where the window opens: the swell drops to 2.0m out of the WNW, 11-second period, with light 15 km/h cross-off wind. Combined energy is 979. Clean, pushy, good shape. Sunday afternoon is the real standout – the wind goes glassy at 5 km/h from the NW, swell is 1.7m at 10 seconds, energy at 732. That’s butter. Expect some company – crowds are possible here – but it’ll be worth it.
Monday the 14th gets small: 0.9m NNW swell with 12-second period. Morning wind is 20 km/h cross-off, then afternoon turns light offshore from the SW, energy at 453. Clean but small – a longboard day. Water temp is 14°, pretty normal for September.
Tuesday the 15th: morning sees a little 1.0m swell with light wind, then the afternoon goes ugly – 2.3m NW swell with a short 6-second period and 35 km/h cross-shore wind, energy at 375. Choppy, lumpy, avoid.
From Wednesday the 16th through Sunday the 20th, we’re in a messy zone with big, windy swells. The 18th and 19th see 4m+ WNW groundswell – combined energy hits 5819 on the 18th, but the wind is strong even if offshore. Too big and gnarly for this reef. Experts only if they’re feeling bold.
Monday the 21st brings another massive 4.5m WNW swell with 12-second period and cross-off wind – energy at 6459. Not for the faint of heart. Tuesday the 22nd is slightly smaller at 3.5m but with bumpy east cross-on wind.
Finally, Wednesday the 23rd – the swell drops to 1.9m WNW, cross-off wind, energy at 1049. Marginal but surfable. Thursday the 24th has glassy conditions in the morning with a tiny 0.9m northerly swell, energy at 169 – small and weak, but clean.
Best call: Sunday the 13th afternoon – glassy, clean, 1.7m overhead sets. That’s the highlight. For a second pick, take Sunday morning the 13th for a little more size and still clean. After that, it’s quiet until the 23rd.
Rusty, signing off.
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 16mm), heaviest on Mon night. Very mild (max 18°C on Mon morning, min 11°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the WNW on Sat afternoon, calm by Sun afternoon). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 10mm), heaviest on Wed night. Very mild (max 13°C on Thu morning, min 9°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the NW on Tue night, light winds from the SSW by Wed night). | |||||||||||||||||||
Sat 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | ||||||||||||||
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) | WNW 13 | WNW 12 | WNW 11 | WNW 10 | WNW 10 | NNW 12 | NNW 12 | W 11 | W 11 | NW 6 | NNW 6 | NNW 8 | W 11 | NNW 9 | W 8 | W 8 | WNW 15 | WNW 14 | WNW 13 | W 12 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 3441 | 2067 | 938 | 607 | 282 | 250 | 228 | 317 | 220 | 375 | 246 | 373 | 379 | 318 | 339 | 542 | 8347 | 5808 | 3193 | 2590 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off |
High Tide | 10:14PM5.32m | 10:45AM4.94m | 10:49PM5.21m | 11:16AM4.81m | 11:23PM5.00m | 11:47AM4.64m | 11:58PM4.71m | 12:19PM4.44m | 00:35AM4.38m | 12:56PM4.22m | 1:21AM4.04m | 1:43PM4.00m | 2:27AM3.75m | |||||||
Low Tide | 4:05PM1.28m | 4:31AM0.90m | 4:40PM1.32m | 5:06AM1.09m | 5:15PM1.44m | 5:39AM1.36m | 5:50PM1.64m | 6:12AM1.69m | 6:27PM1.89m | 6:47AM2.04m | 7:09PM2.16m | 7:27AM2.38m | 8:04PM2.43m | |||||||
 |  |  |  |  | |  |  | | |  | | |  |  | | | | | | |
 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:46 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — |
 | 7:44 | — | — | 7:40 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:35 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:29 | — | — | 7:25 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 1 |
Temp °C | 14 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 17 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 |
Feels °C | 7 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 15 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 6 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 7 | WNW 12 | WNW 11 | WNW 10 | WNW 10 | NNW 12 | W 9 | W 11 | W 11 | SE 6 | W 10 | W 12 | N 8 | NNW 9 | N 8 | N 8 | WNW 15 | WNW 14 | WNW 13 | N 9 |
| kJ | 8 | 2067 | 938 | 607 | 282 | 250 | 225 | 317 | 220 | 1 | 153 | 319 | 270 | 318 | 86 | 46 | 8347 | 5808 | 3193 | 7 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | NNW 14 | NNW 13 | NNW 12 | WNW 9 | NNW 12 | NNW 11 | N 10 | — | SE 6 | — | W 11 | W 10 | SSE 4 | W 17 | N 8 | N 8 | N 8 | — |
| kJ | — | — | 41 | 125 | 267 | 132 | 228 | 156 | 96 | — | 2 | — | 379 | 216 | 2 | 5 | 18 | 11 | 5 | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | NW 12 | — | SE 4 | — | SE 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | W 17 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 39 | — | 3 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 13 | WNW 12 | — | — | SE 3 | S 3 | S 3 | SE 5 | — | NW 6 | NNW 6 | NNW 8 | NW 8 | S 2 | W 8 | W 8 | — | — | — | W 12 |
| kJ | 3441 | 1338 | — | — | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | — | 375 | 246 | 373 | 145 | 1 | 339 | 542 | — | — | — | 2590 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 185 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 617 | 664 | 235 | 305 | 0 | 327 | 418 | 29 | 815 | 458 | 1114 |
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)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Thurso Reef surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Thurso Reef Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Thurso Reef provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Thurso Reef can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Thurso Reef 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 Reef) 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 Reef 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 Reef, 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, Kirkwall and Lossiemouth.
Nearest