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West Wales isn't renowned for its high quality surf, nor for consistent surf conditions, however, with a little local knowledge and some patience, worthwhile surfing conditions can be found.

The best surfing conditions arise when a big low pressure system builds in the Atlantic and 'pushes' swell up through St. Georges Channel and onto the beaches and rocky reefs of West Wales. The conditions are at their best when winds contain an easterly element and blow offshore at the various breaks. Unfortunately, the low pressure system that produces the swell often arrives with the swell, bringing winds with a westerly element, forming onshore conditions. This isn't always the case and good days CAN be had. Good surf conditions usually occur during the winter months, but the good news is that the winter months here can be long.

In comparison to other areas of Wales such as Pembrokeshire, The Gower and even Anglesey and the Lleyn Peninsular, the surf in West Wales is less consistent and usually smaller. However, for surfers visiting the area, its always worth bringing your board and a wetsuit as you just never can tell, although in most cases, you probably 'should have been here yesterday'! We do also get some surf during the summer months.

The most consistent of the well known breaks in the area is the Harbour Trap in Aberystwyth. This rocky reef picks up any swell going and is the most commonly surfed break in the area. The best and longest waves are left-handers, but right-handers are possible too. Entry to the wave is from the beach, or at high tide you can jump off the jetty into the channel. The place can and does get crowded and the take-off area is fairly small, so tempers sometimes get frayed. At very high tides, the wave can be badly affected by backwash reflected from the sea wall. On a good day, the Trap can hold waves up to 8 ft with fast, overhead barrels. Such days are few and far between. Generally it is a fast, steep wave that when small breaks in fairly shallow water. See the Aberystwyth Surf Breaks Page for more info.

Other surf breaks in Aberystwyth itself are:

The long sandy beach at Borth has several places to surf. In general, the further north you head along the beach, the more the waves are affected by the winds. The SW corner by the Lifeboat station is the most protected area, and although the waves are generally smaller here, it can be one of the best places to head for during large autumn and winter South-Westerly storms. The waves tend to be bigger further north along the beach, so on rare offshore days with a decent swell, anywhere along the beach can be firing. If the waves are small and winds light or offshore, surfing from the Golf Course Car park is probably the best bet. All these locations are described in more detail in the Borth Surf Breaks Page of this site.

Several good surf breaks can be found south of Aberystwyth, including Morfa Bychan, Llanrhystud, Aberarth and quite a few others that I shouldn't say too much about! Some of these are described in more detail in the Places South of Aberystwyth Page of this site.

There are a few surf breaks North of Aberystwyth too. These are described in the Places North of Aberystwyth Page of this site.

There are few publications or web sites that give more than a passing mention of the surf in West Wales (The Stormrider Guide has a couple of breaks listed). For info on Surfing in the UK in general, one of the best sources is the British Surfing Organisation. Here you will find loads of links to surf shops, surf forecasts, surf newsgroups and all other surf related topics. For more links check out my Surf Links Page.