In Poole Harbour, the bay tucked inside Sandbanks is Whitley Lake to locals, or just "inside Sandbanks", even though it is no lake at all: it is the shallow corner of a huge tidal harbour, with Brownsea Island sitting out in the middle. Give it a mid tide and a westerly and the water goes flat, and you can blast across it for as long as your forearms last.
It is not glamorous. It is a promenade, a row of school vans on Shore Road and a lot of people squinting at the tide table before they rig. On a classic windy weekend there can be over fifty windsurfers out, a load of kiters and half a dozen wingers, and you soon learn who is who by their sails.
On a spring high in 20 knots or more it chops up, because the waves bounce back off the sea walls, and that short chop throws up little ramps if you fancy a chop-hop.
ERA5 puts the share of rideable days 10.4 points lower here, and no weather station has settled it, so treat these figures as a guide.
At a glance
Is it for you?
Skill levelComfortable
WaterBit of chop
Wind · SepHit and miss
Crowds · SepBusy patches
Local vibeWelcoming
Water qualityUsually clean
NightlifeA bar or two
CostMid
Geek analysis
September in the record
44% of days clear 12 kt for three daylight hours or more.
In September the wind most often sits at 8 to 11 kt (28% of daylight hours). No daylight hour is over 12 kt on at least half the days. The best hour is 3pm, on 48% of days. See both charts in the full report
No weather station near enough to check these figures against.
September on the record
The month's own figures, not the year's average.
Rideable days13 of 30Three Septembers in the record
Wind, rideable hours17 ktMean over daylight hours at 12 kt+
Air19.1°CMaximum
Waves0.6 m14% of days run big
Take it with you
The full Poole Harbour report
Seven sections over six pages, built from the same record as this page. A PDF you can read on the plane.
01Hour-by-hour & month-by-month wind02The month's own records03Full stays, schools & kit04Per-launch tide windows05Mudflats, channels & the harbour entrance06Getting there, packing & best months07Sources, and their limits
WindChaser spot reportPoole HarbourDorset, United Kingdom · September44% of days clear 12 kt for three daylight hours or more.
When it gets busy
Crowds
Jan · Low
Summer weekends are the busy stretch at Shore Road, and the launch gets crowded very early. Come in winter and it is mostly the regulars, the schools and a lot of room.
On the water
What September usually does
September sits outside the best months here. 44% of days clear 12 kt for three daylight hours or more.
Your playground
Launches & safety
Conditions change. Check local rules and conditions before you ride.
Launch
Hazard
Parking
School
Stay
Webcam
Approximate
Local intel
Getting there & on the ground
Nearest airportBournemouth (BOH)About 11 miles by road. Southampton (SOU) is about 38.
On the groundOctober to MarchThe months the record shows the most rideable days.
Getting aroundCar or the Breezer busThe Purbeck Breezer 50 runs from Bournemouth via Sandbanks. Roadside parking by the launch is paid, and the launch gets crowded early on summer weekends.
