Fundamentals of surfing forecasts
Choose where to surf by yourself!
Planning a surfing session
To see if you can have a safe and a productive surf session in
a specific spot on a specific date, check this)
> Swell directio"
> Swell height and perio'
> Tide (low/medium/high3
> Wind (direction & speed3
> Working wind and swell for this specific spo+
> Type of break: beach break, point break, reef or river mout
> Tips from locals
Waves are more than just swell!
Wind
A wave is formed by,
=5 SwellD
Wave
+5 Tid-
Swell
&5 WindD
5 Type of break
Tides
The break doesn't change, it just depends
on the spot, but other parameters can be Break
forecasted or calculated.
When all factors are present, a so-called groundswell forms. That's a row of waves with a certain height and
period, which appears after storm in the ocean. It often brings clean, well formed surf.
Windswell
When there’s no swell, so called windswell is formed. It’s typical for bays
and gulfs.
It's created by less powerful wind and storms that occur closer to the
shore. In this case, waves don’t have enough distance to form clean
patterns, so the surf is often broken up.
For educational purposes, let’s learn to read a surf forecast for a spot
that has swell, tides and wind.
Wind forecast map
Reading swell forecast: direction
AC Swell direction shows you where the swell is coming FRO/
)C Some spots are very sensitive to swell direction, for example
located in a bay: if the direction is not right, the waves simply won't reach the shoreC
the shape of the seabed could be such that if the swell comes from on the right, then the
waves will be long and even, but if it is on the left, then the surf length will be short.
3. The majority of spots are not that sensitive to small variations, and
many generally work in all directions of the swell.
Reading swell forecast: height and period (1)
Let’s say, the swell direction is good for this spot.
It's time to determine wave size.
It’s based on
swell height (measured in meters/ft%
wave period (measured in seconds)
The general rule is: The higher the swell, the more powerful the waves
will be. Wave period (the time of the complete wave cycle) will
determine the size of the waves.
Reading swell forecast: height and period (2)
To roughly estimate actual wave height, use this rule:
Swell period Wave height Example:
< 11 s wave height < swell height
If the swell is 1.7 meters high, and the
period is 12 seconds, the wave will
11-12 s wave height = swell height
probably be approximately 1.7 meters
14-19 s wave height > swell height
or a little more.
> 20s wave height = 2 x swell height
Wind for surfers (1)
Best wind = no wind! (glassy conditions)
If there’s wind, look at speed and direction
Wind direction Influence on waves
Offshore good wall of the wave
Onshore more quickly closing out
Crossshore possible current
Wind for surfers (2)
OFFSHORE CROSSSHORE ONSHORE
Wind is coming from the land, pushing Wind is coming from the sides of the Wind is coming from the ocean. It is
against the face of the wave, creating neat break. Depending on the strength of the the worst type of wind, since the wind
and tidy conditions. The offshore wind wind and the type of break, the wave can is pushing the wave from the back and
helps waves get a clear shape. It’s similar be still surfable, however it’s shape tends messing it up. If the wind is light, the
to “no wind” conditions. to get messed up. It can create or affect wave can still be surfable.
the current.
Tides for surfers
Determine the best time of day to ride
) Most surf spots are sensitive to changes in water levels. See spot info for the
working tide level. even if a spot works on all tides, the quality of waves can
change with the water level.7
) Tides don't need to be predicted, they are determined by the moon and the
sun and can be calculate3
) General rule: waves on a low tide are sharper than on a high tid*
) Depending on tides, the currents on a spot can change.
How to choose a spot: when the spot is working
Check out the SPOT INFO section or other resources
to learn about a certain spot.
Crucial parameters are
Working swell direction*
Type of brea9
Working tide*
Working wind directions
How to choose a spot: types of break (1)
On point breaks:
the waves rise due to the part of the land that protrudes into the ocean. It can
be an island, a small peninsula, a cape, a ridge of stones.
On reef break:
Waves rise up colliding with the reef or coral shelf. Due to the fact that the reef
remains unchanged, waves like that have more constant shape and size.
On beach break:
Wave are formed due to the alluvium of the sandy bottom which generate
“sand banks”. Unfortunately, beach breaks have much more instability and
mobility than point and reef waves, as the shape, length and peak of the wave
is constantly changing.
How to choose a spot: types of break (2)
Point break Reef break Beach break
Sometimes you can also check the type of break using the sattelite map view.
How to choose a spot: reviews from locals
Why are they worth reading*
2/ They come from people with first-hand knowledge of the spot/
/ There could be local tips like optimal swell energy for this spot or
wetsuit thickness recommendation@
"/ There could be information on the current situation on the spot
(restrictions, trash on the shore and etc.)
Thousands of surf spots have reviews from other
surfers in Windy.app.
Bonus: how to forecast the swell
(as big wave surfers do)
The strongest storms are assosiated with cyclones
(low pressure areas, the center is marked by the letter
“L” ). Winds blow along isobars (lines around the
letter “L”). The closer the isobars are to each other,
Swell direction
the stronger the winds.
These storms produce swell.
If you know where the cyclone is, you can predict
where the swell will be in advance.
Wind direction
Bonus: swell propagation on the map
T+00h T+12h T+24h T+36h
Recap
Always check
Spot working condition
Swell directio
Swell height and perio
Wind speed and directio
Tides
-> Go surfing :)
Now you know how to check the surf forecast by yourself.
Good luck!
