| BEAUFORT | LABEL | KNOTS | EFFECT ON SEA | EFFECTS ON LAND |
| 0 | Calm | 1 | Sea like a mirror | Calm. Smoke rises vertically. |
| 1 | Light Air | 1-3 | Ripples with the appearance of scales are formed, but without foam crests | Wind motion visible in smoke. |
| 2 | Light Breeze | 4-6 | Small wavelets, still short, but more pronounced. Crests have a glassy appearance and do not break | Wind felt on exposed skin. Leaves rustle. |
| 3 | Gentle Breeze | 7-10 | Large wavelets. Crests begin to break. Foam of glassy appearance. Perhaps scattered white horses | Leaves and smaller twigs in constant motion. |
| 4 | Moderate Breeze | 10-15 | Small waves, becoming larger; fairly frequent white horses | Dust and loose paper raised. Small branches begin to move. |
| 5 | Fresh Breeze | 16-21 | Moderate waves, taking a more pronounced long form; many white horses are formed. Chance of some spray | Branches of a moderate size move. Small trees begin to sway. |
| 6 | Strong breeze | 22-27 | Large waves begin to form; the white foam crests are more extensive everywhere. Probably some spray | Large branches in motion. Whistling heard in overhead wires. Umbrella use becomes difficult. Empty plastic garbage cans tip over. |
| 7 | High wind, near gale | 28-33 | Sea heaps up and white foam from breaking waves begins to be blown in streaks along the direction of the wind | Whole trees in motion. Effort needed to walk against the wind. Swaying of skyscrapers may be felt, especially by people on upper floors. |
| 8 | Gale | 34-40 | Moderately high waves of greater length; edges of crests begin to break into spindrift. The foam is blown in well-marked streaks along the direction of the wind | Twigs broken from trees. Cars veer on road. |
| 9 | Severe Gale | 41-47 | High waves. Dense streaks of foam along the direction of the wind. Crests of waves begin to topple, tumble and roll over. Spray may affect visibility | Larger branches break off trees, and some small trees blow over. Construction/temporary signs and barricades blow over. Damage to circus tents and canopies. |
| 10 | Storm | 48-55 | Very high waves with long over-hanging crests. The resulting foam, in great patches, is blown in dense white streaks along the direction of the wind. On the whole the surface of the sea takes on a white appearance. The 'tumbling' of the sea becomes heavy and shock-like. Visibility affected | Trees are broken off or uprooted, saplings bent and deformed, poorly attached asphalt shingles and shingles in poor condition peel off roofs. |
| 11 | Violent Storm | 56-63 | Exceptionally high waves (small and medium-size ships might disappear behind the waves). The sea is completely covered with long white patches of foam flying along the direction of the wind. Everywhere the edges of the wave crests are blown into froth. Visibility affected | Widespread vegetation damage. More damage to most roofing surfaces, asphalt tiles that have curled up and/or fractured due to age may break away completely. |
| 12 | Hurricane | 64-71 | The air is filled with foam and spray. Sea completely white with driving spray; visibility very seriously affected | Considerable and widespread damage to vegetation, a few windows broken, structural damage to mobile homes and poorly constructed sheds and barns. Debris may be hurled about. |
- 01 Jan 2026
CS&PF Annual Dinner 2026
Channel Swimming & Piloting Federation Annual Dinner 2026Saturday 14th March 2026Channel Suite - Leas Cliff Hall - Folkestonetickets@cspf.co.ukTickets are now on sale and are £50 per person.Tickets will be on sale until the 31st of January unless they sell out sooner.To book your tickets please, for my sanity read the following carefully and only apply for tickets when you have ALL the information.Information required at the time of booking:The name of everyone in your party. Make one booking for the whole group.Tables seat 10.If you are booking more than one table, please state who will be sat at which table.Dietary requirements – this cannot be accommodated on the night so must be supplied at the time of booking.Access requirements / special needs.The country you are travelling from if it is outside the UK.Swim stories to a maximum of 150 words for each 2025 season solo swimmer.Photos for each 2025 solo swimmer, and relay team in your party.Please name the file names the solo surname or relay name.Once I have ALL the information required to make your booking, I will send you the details to make payment by bank transfer. When making your transfer please:Make one payment for your whole party.Use the name that made the booking as the reference on the bank transfer.I made it through last year without threatening to murder someone at some point in the process, so let’s go for the double ????.ThanksMichelletickets@cspf.co.uk Read more
