Widemouth Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, grab a coffee, because I’m looking at the next 16 days for Widemouth Bay, and it’s a bit of a rough one, to be honest. The spot is a beach and reef setup, pretty exposed to the west-northwest, which is where the swell should be coming from, but the timing is just off. For the first few days, the waves are tiny, with a poor wave state, and the wind is a real problem. The 20th of July kicks off with a tiny 0.7 ft west swell, but a cross-shore wind from the NNW is making it choppy, and the energy is barely a whisper at 18. It’s a real struggle.

The first worthwhile tickle comes on the morning of the 21st of July. The swell is still pathetic at 2 ft from the NNW, with a period of just 5 seconds – that’s weak, short-period wind swell right there. The combined energy is only 38, so it’s feeble. But the wind is a gentle cross-offshore breeze from the NNE, so the surface is clean. It’s still poor surf conditions, but if you were desperate, you could get out for a mess-around. The water temperature is 64°, which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, so that’s a small comfort. That’s about as good as it gets for a while.

We then hit a long stretch of nothing. The rest of July is a write-off. The swell tries to pick up a little, like on the morning of the 26th of July, with a 4 ft swell from the WNW, but the period is still a short 6 seconds, and the energy climbs to 119 (moderate). But the wind is a moderate cross-shore, creating a cross-chop, and the forecast says *poor surf conditions*. It’s just not worth it. The 27th of July morning brings a 5 ft swell from the WNW, the biggest of the window, with a period of 7 seconds and energy of 180 (moderate), but again, a moderate cross-onshore wind ruins it. That size is edging into the too-big-for-beginners territory, but with the cross-onshore, it’s just a messy, lumpy mess.

The best chance of something clean, and I mean the only real standout, is the morning of the 30th of July. It’s still a tiny 1 ft swell from the WNW, but the period is 10 seconds, which is some proper groundswell energy. The wind is a light offshore breeze from the east, so it’s clean. The energy is only 30 (weak), but the glassy conditions could make for a few fun, little peelers. The bigger swell on the 27th of July is too compromised by the wind to be a proper pick. For the first week of August, the patterns repeat: onshore winds and small, weak swell, with the 3rd of August seeing a 3 ft swell from the WNW but hammered by a 19 mph onshore wind.

So, the honest truth is this: there is no classic, firing day in the whole 16 days. The standouts are the 30th of July morning for the cleanest conditions, and the 27th of July morning for the biggest wave height, but it is so messy. For a beginner, that 5 ft on the 27th is too big, especially with the wind on it. The 30th of July is your best bet, but it’s tiny. The forecast confidence is low for the second week, but the pattern looks stubborn. It’s a tough outlook for the paddle crew; honestly, the wind and swell setup on the 25th and 26th of July, with the onshore winds and moderate energy, makes it look more interesting for a kite surfer than a paddler.

Rusty.

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