Surfing Waves

So me and a few buddys are all heading of to Newquay on monday for just under a week - was hoping some of you guys would be able to give us an idea of what surf conditions were likely to expect ....

were staying pretty much near fistral but also looking to venture around - watergate bay - crantock etc ... and maybe perenporth

sorry if theres an easier way of looking than posting on a forum, ... still im sure you guys can help!

cheers makka

Don't know how accurate this'll be, msw's been playin' up lately, but for what it's worth:

http://magicseaweed.com/Newquay-Fistral-Surf-Report/1/

a1 surf.com

has all the beaches in the south west and week forecasts.

Its not looking good!

U know there was a BIIIIG fire in Newquay,
A hotel burnt down.
Wouldnt go to that hotel if i were u, i mean u wouldnt want to be eating burnt toast every morning

Do you reckon Newquay will be packed this weekend? The weather is looking really good (for a change!!) and I'm considering going there on Saturday or maybe Polzeath.

And the parking on the hill that's really close to Fistral .. don't suppose anyone knows how much it is to park all day? I have a feeling it's £6 but not sure ... and do those spaces usually get taken really quickly?

Chris369 wrote:Do you reckon Newquay will be packed this weekend?

Packed? On bank holiday weekend? With the chance of good weather and a bit of a wave?

Heaving is the word that springs to mind!! Avoid it at all cost would be my advice!

Bewilderbeast wrote:

Chris369 wrote:Do you reckon Newquay will be packed this weekend?

Packed? On bank holiday weekend? With the chance of good weather and a bit of a wave?

Heaving is the word that springs to mind!! Avoid it at all cost would be my advice!

Damn, thought so. I bet most beaches will be like that though! Maybe Polzeath will be the better of the two.

Chris369 wrote: bet most beaches will be like that though! Maybe Polzeath will be the better of the two.

Better, yes. Good, no.
Almost everywhere will be rammed this weekend. Polzeath certainly will be *shudder*

And the forecast of a kneehigh wave means every kook will be on it

I'm planning a significant amount of time in the pub this weekend

I'll be one of those kooks

I went for it and headed off to Polzeath. Left at 8:30 and got there in about 1 hour 30. Traffic on the way up wasn't too bad but whenever a slip road was coming up on the dual carriageway traffic slowed down to 40ish, sometimes slower. The "country lanes" (best way I can think of describing them!) once off the dual carriageway were nice and clear though so made up some time

Quite a lot of people surfing but again, wasn't too bad and could normally get a clear line. Was a bit flat at first but it picked up pretty quickly and was ideal for me! Ended up surfing for 4 hours and managed to surf along the face of the wave a few times

I'm rubbish at catching un-broken waves though. Should I be able to do that on a swell beginners board (foam?)? I wanna get my own board soon but dunno if it's too soon.

Chris369 wrote:I'm rubbish at catching un-broken waves though. Should I be able to do that on a swell beginners board (foam?)? I wanna get my own board soon but dunno if it's too soon.

You could catch unbroken waves on a swell board (although Im tempted to ask 'what would be the point?'....) but swell boards are really only for your first couple of times in the water. After that you'll be better off learning on a 'real' board. So, no, its not too soon. Get a real board, but make sure its a big ol' mini-mal for the sake of your learning curve.

Yeah a guy at my local surf shop suggested a 7'6 mini mal so will probably end up getting something like that. I've seen that size and type suggested quite a lot on here too. I need to get a roof rack sorted out on my car first though.

About un broken waves ... aren't you supposed to be able to catch them? I mean I see the wave coming, start paddling and it just doesn't put me a long and then once it's passed me it breaks and I miss it! I assumed you should be able to catch it before it breaks?

Chris369 wrote:About un broken waves ... aren't you supposed to be able to catch them? I mean I see the wave coming, start paddling and it just doesn't put me a long and then once it's passed me it breaks and I miss it! I assumed you should be able to catch it before it breaks?

Yup, you should be able to. But it can be quite a difficult thing to do and takes a lot of practise. Prepare to spend quite a lot of time in the whitewater before you're catching unbroken waves properly. Dont worry, it takes time and practise.

Ah fair enough. I was thinking I should be able to do that on a swell board before moving onto a proper board. I'll have to see if they have some proper ones next time I hire.

Cheers.