Cowes – the Solent

Cowes, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom

Sports: Windsurfing, SUP

Best time to go: February, November–December

Cowes sits at the mouth of the River Medina on the north shore of the Isle of Wight, looking across the Solent to the mainland. The island shelters the Solent from Channel swell, so the water is mostly flat to choppy, while the prevailing southwesterlies blow steadily across it. On warm days a sea breeze adds to the gradient wind, and easterly spells bring cooler, more variable conditions.

The tide shapes everything here. Streams run hard through the western Solent and around the headlands, and the double high water typical of the area can catch out visitors, so racers and cruisers alike plan around the tidal atlas. The Solent is also a busy shipping route to Southampton, with ferries, large commercial ships and moving exclusion zones around them. Cowes has many long-established yacht clubs and sailing schools, and suits everyone from first-timers in dinghies to offshore crews. Cowes Week in early August and the Round the Island Race in early summer are among the best-known regattas in the world.

Month by month at Cowes – the Solent

January: 13 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 13 knots, waves 0.7 m, air 8°C (nights 4°C), 14 sunny days, 13 rainy days
February: 15 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 14 knots, waves 0.7 m, air 10°C (nights 6°C), 13 sunny days, 12 rainy days
March: 12 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 0.7 m, air 11°C (nights 6°C), 20 sunny days, 13 rainy days
April: 11 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 0.6 m, air 14°C (nights 7°C), 26 sunny days, 9 rainy days
May: 9 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 10 knots, waves 0.4 m, air 17°C (nights 10°C), 28 sunny days, 12 rainy days
June: 11 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 0.4 m, air 20°C (nights 13°C), 29 sunny days, 9 rainy days
July: 12 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 0.3 m, air 22°C (nights 15°C), 29 sunny days, 10 rainy days
August: 11 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 11 knots, waves 0.3 m, air 22°C (nights 16°C), 29 sunny days, 10 rainy days
September: 12 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 0.3 m, air 19°C (nights 13°C), 24 sunny days, 12 rainy days
October: 14 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 13 knots, waves 0.5 m, air 16°C (nights 12°C), 20 sunny days, 15 rainy days
November: 17 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 14 knots, waves 0.6 m, air 12°C (nights 8°C), 14 sunny days, 15 rainy days
December: 18 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 15 knots, waves 0.7 m, air 10°C (nights 6°C), 9 sunny days, 12 rainy days

When is the best time to go windsurfing at Cowes – the Solent?

February, November–December, when it is windy most often.

How windy is Cowes – the Solent?

About 155 days a year with at least 2 hours of 15+ knots in the daytime, most in December.

Figures from 5 years of weather data (Open-Meteo).

Spots near Cowes – the Solent

More: All spots in United Kingdom · Windsurfing in United Kingdom · SUP in United Kingdom

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