Surfing the UK

Thurso East is Scotland's crown jewel--a world-class right-hand reef that has hosted international competition and draws dedicated cold-water chargers from across the globe. When...

Brimms Ness Bowl is one of Scotland's most fearsome waves--a thick, grinding slab that detonates over shallow reef on the remote Caithness coastline.

Bagpipes is the kind of wave that separates the serious from the curious--a heavy slab that detonates on a shallow reef shelf along the remote Caithness coast.

Thurso Reef sits in the shadow of its more famous neighbour Thurso East, serving as both an overflow option and a quality wave in its own right.

Brimms Ness Point is the left-hand counterpart to the nearby Bowl--a long, walling left that peels along the reef at the headland.

Murkle is a fickle but fearsome left-hand slab near Thurso that wraps around the point and produces thick, pitching barrels.

Sandside Bay would be famous for its quality left-hander if it weren't for its proximity to the Dounreay nuclear facility.

Gills Bay Slab is one of Europe's heaviest waves--a monstrous left-hand slab that only comes alive during the most violent winter storms.

Dunnet Bay is the friendly face of Caithness surfing--a broad sandy beach that offers a gentler introduction to the region.

The Cribbar is England's answer to big wave surfing--a monstrous reef that lurks off Towan Head in Newquay, only awakening when massive Atlantic storms send long-period...

Little Fistral sits at the southern end of its more famous neighbour, offering a more technical reef/point setup that rewards local knowledge.

Fistral Beach is the undisputed capital of English surfing--the beach that has hosted international competition for decades.

The Zorba is the Cribbar's lesser-known but equally fearsome sibling--a big wave reef off Pentire headland.

Freshwater West is Pembrokeshire's most exposed beach--a long stretch of sand with reef sections that sits wide open to Atlantic SW swells.

Manorbier--known as The Dak--is one of Pembrokeshire's best reef breaks, a peeling right-hander that works on dropping high tide.

Whitesands Bay sits near St Davids and is Pembrokeshire's most popular beach break.

Newgale is one of Pembrokeshire's most consistent surf spots--a pebble-and-sand beach that bears the full force of Atlantic swells.

Dalmore is one of the Outer Hebrides' most photogenic surf spots--a dramatic crescent of sand flanked by towering sea stacks and dark cliffs on the Isle of Lewis.

Eoropie sits at the very tip of the Isle of Lewis, near the Butt of Lewis lighthouse, and catches just about every swell the North Atlantic produces.

Dalbeg Slab lurks in a secluded cove on Lewis' west coast--a left-hand slab that fires during winter storms.

Clachtoll is a picture-postcard pocket beach on Sutherland's wild coast, framed by ancient Lewisian gneiss.

Melvich Rivermouth is one of Sutherland's most flexible waves--a sandbar where a peat-stained river creates ever-shifting banks.

Torrisdale Bay is one of Scotland's most remote and beautiful surf spots--a wide sandy bay where the Naver river creates sandbars.

Three Peaks is one of the Gower's most powerful setups--an exposed reef that produces heavy A-frame peaks.

Rhossili Bay is frequently voted one of the UK's most beautiful beaches--sweeping sand backed by dramatic cliffs.

Llangennith is the Gower's workhorse wave--the go-to beach that catches most swells.

Porthleven is Cornwall's heavy-water arena--a powerful reef break that detonates beside the harbour wall when sizeable SW groundswells wrap into Mount's Bay. The wave is an...

Praa Sands is south Cornwall's most popular beach break--a south-facing cove that catches SW groundswell.

Lynmouth is Devon's hidden gem--a fickle left-hand point break that only comes alive with substantial WNW groundswell and the right wind. When the stars align, long walls peel...

Croyde Bay is Devon's most celebrated beach break--a horseshoe-shaped bay that produces hollow, punchy peaks at low tide when the rock shelf creates steep, barrelling waves.

Skara Brae sits on Orkney's raw, exposed west coast near one of Europe's most important Neolithic sites. This left-hand reef catches virtually everything the North Atlantic throws...

Marwick Bay is one of Orkney's most exposed surf spots--a right-hand reef on the west coast wide open to the North Atlantic.

Crab Island is one of the Gower's quality reef setups, breaking off a rocky platform in Langland Bay. It needs proper size to wrap around the Bristol Channel.

Pete's Reef is one of the Gower's open secrets--a shallow, technical reef at Langland Bay that produces quality waves at low tide.

St Agnes is a characterful Cornish surf village with a beach/reef setup that produces quality waves through a range of conditions.

Porthtowan is a punchy Cornish beach break that packs more power than many visitors expect.

Freshwater Bay is the Isle of Wight's most iconic wave--a hollow right-hand reef/point that breaks over jagged rock.

Compton Bay is the Isle of Wight's most surfed beach--a stretch with three distinct sections.

Porthcawl Point--known locally as The Peak--is South Wales' most iconic wave. This reef/point setup breaks best at high tide.

Sennen Cove sits near the very tip of Cornwall at Land's End, wide open to whatever the Atlantic sends its way.

Kimmeridge is Dorset's premier reef break--a powerful right-hander that peels off Broad Bench headland when strong SW groundswell wraps around the south coast.

Salt House Reef sits at the southern end of Widemouth Bay near Bude, where submerged rock formations create defined peaks with more power than the adjacent beach break.

Machrihanish's Westport sandbar sits at the north end of one of Scotland's most beautiful beaches.

Porth Neigwl--or Hell's Mouth--is a sweeping 3-mile beach on the Lleyn Peninsula that catches SW-S swells.

Rest Bay is the most consistent break in Porthcawl's varied lineup--a broad sandy beach that picks up SW swells.

Bantham sits at the mouth of the River Avon in South Devon, where the river creates sandbars that produce surprisingly powerful waves.

Port Bharrapol sits on Tiree--the windiest island in Britain and one of its most unlikely surf destinations.

Cayton Point is Yorkshire's most feared wave--a heavy, multi-lipped left that breaks directly onto shallow boulder reef.

Saltburn is the spiritual home of northeast England surfing--a Victorian seaside town with beach and reef.

Tynemouth Longsands is the most accessible surf in northeast England--a long sandy beach within easy reach of Newcastle.