Spots › Dorset
Portland Harbour
Large sheltered Olympic-venue harbour offering butter-flat water at most tides. SW/W gives silky side-offshore flat conditions; launch from the pebble/grass shore at Ferrybridge by Billy Winters. A Portland Port day permit (and insurance) is required to ride, and on easterlies kiting is low-tide only. Over 2.5 h from London — not a day-trip spot for most.
📏 Tide heights — next 7 days (chart datum at Portland)| Wed 29 | HW 07:35 1.7m · LW 12:25 0.4m · HW 19:55 2.0m |
| Thu 30 | LW 01:05 0.3m · HW 08:20 1.8m · LW 13:05 0.4m · HW 20:35 2.0m |
| Fri 31 | LW 01:40 0.3m · HW 09:00 1.8m · LW 13:40 0.3m · HW 21:15 2.0m |
| Sat 1 | LW 02:10 0.2m · HW 09:35 1.8m · LW 14:15 0.3m · HW 21:50 2.0m |
| Sun 2 | LW 02:40 0.2m · HW 10:00 1.8m · LW 14:50 0.3m · HW 22:15 1.9m |
| Mon 3 | LW 03:15 0.2m · HW 10:25 1.8m · LW 15:20 0.3m · HW 22:35 1.9m |
| Tue 4 | LW 03:45 0.2m · HW 10:55 1.7m · LW 15:55 0.3m · HW 23:05 1.8m |
No measured beach/groyne height for this spot yet — log a beach report to add one.
🧭 Wind directions Portland Harbour — enclosed by breakwaters; flat and sheltered, launch to suit the wind. A facing bearing does not apply; curated list trusted wholesale.
Next 7 days at Portland HarbourBest of the week: Fri 31 Jul, ~16 kt around 15:00–18:00 BST (viable — a powered-down 12 m session) — gusty (+7 kt). Lighter option: Wed 29 Jul ~17 kt — an OK session on a 12 m. AROME and UKV 2km agree (within ~2 kt) over the next 60 h — confidence good (lead model here: UKV 2km).
Windguru forecast
7-day forecast
Wind scale:
<10
10–11
12–13
14–15
16–19
20–29
30+ kt ⚠
Multi-model composite: the first 60 hours come from AROME-FR 1.3km and UKV 2km (AROME first, UKV filling its gaps); beyond 60 h the best available of HARM-DK 2km → ICON 2.2km → Zephr-HD 2.6km → IFS-HRES 9km → GFS 13km extends the table to the end of day 7. Temperature blended from GFS. Tides from UKHO Admiralty (BST, 7-day window). Always verify on Windguru.
Marginal — ~13 kt, big kites only. Peak ~13 kt SW in the tide window. marginal — larger kites (14 m+) — most riders won't get planing; 15 m+/foil specialists only.
15:00
13 kt
17 kt
↗ SW
12%
20°C
16:00
15 kt
20 kt
↗ SW
11%
20°C
17:00
18 kt
24 kt
↗ SW
—
22°C
18:00
17 kt
24 kt
↗ WSW
—
21°C
19:00
17 kt
23 kt
↗ WSW
—
21°C
20:00
9 kt
16 kt
→ W
15%
22°C
21:00
9 kt
12 kt
↓ NNW
38%
22°C
Marginal — ~13 kt, big kites only. Peak ~13 kt SW in the tide window. marginal — big kites (15 m+)/foils — most riders won't get planing; 15 m+/foil specialists only.
Best window detail — 10:06–16:06 BST (UKV 2km hourly)
Hourly UKV 2km wind for the 2-hour tide window (★) plus an hour either side, averaging ~12 kt in the low-tide window.
TimeWindGustDir
10:008 ktg10WSW
11:00 ★9 ktg13WSW
12:00 ★11 ktg14SW
13:00 ★14 ktg19SW
14:00 ★16 ktg21SW
15:00 ★13 ktg17WSW
16:00 ★13 ktg17W
17:0010 ktg14W
06:00
10 kt
14 kt
→ W
73%
19°C
09:00
9 kt
13 kt
↗ WSW
56%
20°C
12:00
12 kt
18 kt
↗ SW
67%
20°C
15:00
13 kt
17 kt
→ WSW
63%
20°C
18:00
11 kt
18 kt
→ WNW
83%
21°C
21:00
12 kt
16 kt
↘ WNW
99%
20°C
Viable session — ~17 kt WSW in the green window (15:00–16:00 BST). Working direction (WSW) with ~17 kt for 2 h inside the tide window (10:40–16:40 BST around the low tide). viable — a powered-down 12 m session.
Best window detail — 10:41–16:41 BST (UKV 2km hourly)
Hourly UKV 2km wind for the 2-hour tide window (★) plus an hour either side, averaging ~13 kt in the low-tide window.
TimeWindGustDir
10:006 ktg8WSW
11:00 ★10 ktg14W
12:00 ★10 ktg14WSW
13:00 ★11 ktg15WSW
14:00 ★11 ktg15WSW
15:00 ★12 ktg17WSW
16:00 ★18 ktg24WSW
17:0016 ktg22WSW
06:00
8 kt
13 kt
↓ N
—
16°C
09:00
8 kt
16 kt
↘ NW
1%
19°C
12:00
12 kt
18 kt
→ WSW
27%
20°C
15:00
16 kt
24 kt
→ WSW
49%
20°C
18:00
13 kt
20 kt
→ W
77%
20°C
21:00
10 kt
14 kt
↘ NW
98%
20°C
Marginal — ~12 kt, big kites only. Peak ~12 kt SW in the tide window. marginal — big kites (15 m+)/foils — most riders won't get planing; 15 m+/foil specialists only.
Best window detail — 11:15–17:15 BST (UKV 2km hourly)
Hourly UKV 2km wind for the 2-hour tide window (★) plus an hour either side, averaging ~11 kt in the low-tide window.
TimeWindGustDir
13:00 ★10 ktg13WSW
16:00 ★13 ktg18W
06:00
7 kt
12 kt
↓ N
11%
16°C
09:00
6 kt
11 kt
↘ NW
1%
18°C
12:00
10 kt
16 kt
→ WSW
3%
19°C
15:00
13 kt
19 kt
→ WSW
40%
19°C
18:00
11 kt
16 kt
→ W
99%
20°C
21:00
9 kt
12 kt
↘ NNW
99%
20°C
Sub-kiteable — peak only 10 kt. Peak wind only 10 kt from SE in the tide window. Below the kiteable threshold for almost every rider.
06:00
9 kt
16 kt
↙ NE
100%
16°C
09:00
8 kt
15 kt
↙ NE
77%
18°C
12:00
7 kt
13 kt
↖ SE
100%
20°C
15:00
7 kt
13 kt
↖ SE
96%
19°C
18:00
5 kt
6 kt
↑ SSW
99%
19°C
Sub-kiteable — peak only 10 kt. Peak wind only 10 kt from WSW in the tide window. Below the kiteable threshold for almost every rider.
06:00
10 kt
15 kt
↙ NE
91%
17°C
09:00
7 kt
11 kt
← ENE
85%
19°C
12:00
7 kt
9 kt
↑ SSE
97%
19°C
15:00
8 kt
11 kt
↑ S
100%
18°C
18:00
8 kt
11 kt
→ WSW
74%
19°C
Marginal — ~12 kt, big kites only. Peak ~12 kt SW in the tide window. marginal — big kites (15 m+)/foils — most riders won't get planing; 15 m+/foil specialists only.
07:00
7 kt
9 kt
→ W
85%
18°C
10:00
9 kt
10 kt
→ W
42%
19°C
13:00
9 kt
13 kt
↗ SW
43%
19°C
16:00
12 kt
16 kt
↗ SW
66%
20°C
19:00
12 kt
16 kt
→ WSW
50%
19°C
Tide times: UKHO Admiralty predictions via
Admiralty Tidal API. Times in BST, rounded to nearest 5 min. Wind & temperature: Windguru multi-model composite (AROME-FR + UKV 2km for the first 60 h, then ICON / Zephr-HD / IFS-HRES / GFS out to day 7). Map: ©
OpenStreetMap contributors.
Important: Forecasts are model-derived and may change. Always verify on
Windguru and check local tide tables before you go. LKSA accepts no liability for decisions made based on this forecast.
