Imagery by Bella Bunce. Presented by Dometic.
You can feel it in the air, the seasons have already swung. We all know September is a special month for the northern hemisphere, when those first bumps of swell finally find their way out of a sleepy North Atlantic. The wave window is open, and may 2026 bring more than a few decent surf sessions as the season plays out.
Right now, there’s a run of surf in the water for the south west of the UK. A fairly typical autumnal pattern but one that’s welcome. Because August was one of the longest summer flat spells in recent memory, almost as long as 2021’s historical bad time, where we went weeks without waves, the longest in 12 years we’d been without waves since 2009. Looking at the data, this past summer wasn’t quite there – but it was close.
Warm drinks on a reasonably warm morning.
Short walk around a headland to have a look at a couple dawn lumps.
So when those first September swells started showing up, every wave-starved surfer across the region sat bolt upright. Those days where you check the cams again and again, make sure the wind is still good, make sure the chores are done, the out of office is on, the boards are de-cobwobbed and the wetsuit is removed from its bucket prison of the past few months.
When it’s been so long without waves, the absolute last thing you want to do is keep leaving the beach too. You need to pack for a day. Just ask Louis Domville-Musters, who recently enjoyed exactly that. After a whole bunch of scouting around, Louis did what we all do and go to the local.
A path not trodden often around these parts.
First swell hit: bit of a bust. Didn’t matter though, plenty more around the coast.
The surf was fun, for the most part, before the wind swung more north, hampering proceedings a touch. But it did not stop the masses from throwing everything they had at this little run – just to feel connected again. Spots that had been hauntingly devoid of surfers suddenly sprung to life, the faint sound of someone, somewhere, applying wax to board to make the most of this lil’ doozee of a swell.
Those northerly winds did not stop Louis from maxing his time in the water, despite having his own business you have to find time for a September session. The kicker? The sun was still in an August-like zenith and the crowds had thinned on the beach. That’s a good combo to get proceedings going. Here’s how Louis got on.
Louis Domville-Musters
“I think I use the ocean like most in Cornwall, it’s a place for rest and resetting as well as a place to exercise and be in nature. It’s not lost on me how lucky I am to be able to swim daily in Falmouth and then go surf at so many amazing beaches in a short drive.
There’s something very ethereal about a castle out at sea.
“As for that summer, I’d surf anything right now. I think at this point I’d take mush, after a drought of rain and waves I’ve been desperate to surf anything over ankle high. I grew up in Devon and moved to Cornwall when I was 19, about 10 years ago now.
Yeah, the swell dipped, the northerlies hit — but that’s ok.
“After spending a summer working for a surf camp I got really into longboarding, by this point I had already given up any ambition of being a ripper so cruising on lots of foam became a great way to stay really excited for small summer days. I have a 9’4” log from Hugh at BOS and a 6’10” twinny my friend Ben at Kaktus surfboards made for me. I find all conditions are catered for with these two boards.
Louis and Tom Baldwin, post surf day.
“Last September I opened a pottery studio in Falmouth, Out West, so most of the time I’m at my wheel making cups, bowls and teapots. I thought working for myself that I could go surf as much as I’d like, but I’m sure as all self-employed people come to realise there are a lot less hours in the day when you run your own business.
“So there’s also that huge convenience factor of pitching up on a beach. That’s what I love doing, spend the day with a group of mates just surfing all day with the tide and having lunch or a bbq; having a cooler on the beach is great for being able to keep food and water cold while we sunned ourselves. You also can’t beat a cold beer after a surf.”
Gear for a day in the drink.
Knee high or whatever, staying at the beach when these sessions roll through is paramount.
Here’s to September!
