Surf Forecasts:
Backsides surf forecast from 20 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 25 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 8s period, ENE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 20 Aug, 4PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 8s period, ESE swell with 232 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 21 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 7s period with ENE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Backsides this week:
The surf forecast for Backsides over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 21) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.8m and 7s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 7s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Backsides in the next 16 days are 1.4m 8s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 20) at 4PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 4s period and expected on Wednesday (Aug 26) at 7AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Fri 21st Aug) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 7s |
| Best Surf | 7AM (Tue 25th Aug) | 3ft (0.9m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 4PM (Thu 20th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Backsides over the next 16 days.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 20°C on Sat morning, min 16°C on Thu morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Warm (max 21°C on Tue morning, min 16°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Sun night, fresh winds from the N by Tue afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ENE 7 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | E 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 7 | SSE 13 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 300 | 232 | 99 | 47 | 31 | 44 | 75 | 51 | 79 | 73 | 64 | 61 | 93 | 72 | 99 | 103 | 99 | 70 | 85 | 104 | 69 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross | off | glassy | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:57PM1.23m | 1:23AM0.89m | 3:12PM1.25m | 2:44AM0.83m | 4:26PM1.30m | 4:35AM0.84m | 5:22PM1.38m | 5:44AM0.90m | 6:06PM1.45m | 6:31AM0.98m | 6:44PM1.52m | 7:09AM1.06m | 7:19PM1.57m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 8:32PM0.69m | 7:40AM0.48m | 10:22PM0.69m | 8:40AM0.52m | 11:39PM0.63m | 9:52AM0.53m | 00:24AM0.55m | 10:59AM0.50m | 00:58AM0.46m | 11:55AM0.45m | 1:29AM0.37m | 12:41PM0.38m | 1:58AM0.30m | ||||||||
 | |  | | | |  | | | |  | | | |  | | |  |  |  |  | |
 | 6:13 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — |
 | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:24 | — | — | 5:24 | — | — | 5:25 | — | — | 5:25 | — | — | 5:27 | — | — | 5:27 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
Temp °C | 18 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 21 | 20 | 18 | 20 | 18 | 15 |
Feels °C | 16 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 20 | 14 | 10 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ENE 7 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | E 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 |
| kJ | 300 | 232 | 99 | 47 | 31 | 44 | 75 | 51 | 79 | 73 | 64 | 61 | 66 | 72 | 99 | 103 | 99 | 70 | 85 | 104 | 69 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 11 | ESE 10 | SE 8 | ESE 7 | SE 8 | SSE 7 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SSE 7 | SE 7 | S 8 | S 5 | SSE 13 | S 11 | S 10 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | N 4 | S 9 | NE 7 |
| kJ | 10 | 21 | 55 | 28 | 28 | 21 | 14 | 14 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 93 | 63 | 76 | 83 | 58 | 32 | 9 | 27 | 25 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | SSE 10 | SE 9 | SSE 8 | ESE 7 | E 13 | E 11 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | NE 10 | S 11 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SE 6 | SSE 5 | SE 5 | NE 7 | S 10 | S 16 | S 8 |
| kJ | — | 10 | 21 | 39 | 27 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 38 | 13 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 29 | 5 | 13 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | NNE 3 | NNE 4 | NW 3 | NNE 3 | NW 3 | — | S 4 | — | — | — | NE 3 | — | NE 3 | NNE 4 | N 4 | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 8 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 1 | — | 6 | — | — | — | 2 | — | 5 | 26 | 12 | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 278 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 4 | 437 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 34 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Coast - New South Wales | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Backsides surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Backsides Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Backsides provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Backsides can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Backsides surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Backsides) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Backsides may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Backsides is 5 km (3 miles) from Ballina. If you plan a holiday in North Coast - New South Wales, look for hotels and other accommodation in Ballina. Ballina has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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