Amanzimtoti Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here. Let's see what the next couple of weeks are cooking up for Amanzimtoti. It's a bit of a mixed bag, so you'll need to pick your moments. The water's running at a pretty normal 70°, nothing unusual for this time of year.

Our window opens Wednesday the 26th of August, but it's not a classic start. Wednesday morning brings a solid 6ft south-southwest swell with a very long period of 18 seconds – loads of energy firing in (1913 combined energy). The downside is a light south-southwest cross-onshore breeze, so it'll be a bit bumpy. The afternoon cleans up a touch as the breeze goes slightly more onshore from the SSE, and the swell bumps up to a powerful 8ft from the south, with a massive energy reading of 4580. That's big, clean, and powerful... but watch out, at over 8ft this is expert only territory. That long period groundswell will make for good shape, but it might break a bit straight at the beach.

Now, you'll want to note Thursday the 27th. The wind swings hard out of the northeast, howling at 22 to 25 mph. The swell drops a little, but the wind is just going to rip the place apart. Friday the 28th through to Monday the 31st of August is a write-off – a solid run of poor, lumpy conditions with cross-shore winds and no quality on offer. We see a big gap here of several days with no surf worth paddling out for.

We get a little flicker Wednesday the 2nd of September. That afternoon brings a 7ft south-southwest groundswell with a 15-second period and light rain, but the wind is onshore from the SE, so it's marginal at best. The following days up until the 7th of September have more NE winds and messy conditions, though a few swells roll through in the 6ft to 10ft range. The 10ft south swell on the 4th of September is big but, again, completely wrecked by 25 mph cross-shore winds – more of a kitesurfer's dream than a paddle surfer's.

The real standout for the whole period, and the only one I'd genuinely get excited about, is Monday the 7th of September. We've got a solid 12ft south-southwest swell, with a 10-second period and moderate combined energy (2504 in the morning, 2674 in the afternoon). The wind is a light cross-onshore from the S and SSE, so it's going to be fairly clean. This is big, powerful stuff – experts only. The swell direction matches the optimum from the south, and Amanzimtoti's fairly consistent reef and beach setup should handle it.

After that, the 8th and 9th drop off again into marginal or poor conditions with NE cross-shore winds and smaller swell. The 10th of September is flat, with tiny 2ft to 2ft swell.

So, if you're looking for a window, Wednesday the 26th of August has size, but the wind is a factor. The absolute best on offer, if you've got the skill, is Monday the 7th of September for that big, clean south swell. Get on it if you can handle the juice.

Rusty.

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