Surf Forecasts:
Bawa surf forecast from 16 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 19 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 8ft (2.5m), 19s period, SSW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 19 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 17s period, SSW swell with 5,331 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 16 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 14s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Bawa this week:
The surf forecast for Bawa over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 16) at 10AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.4m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.9m and 15s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Bawa in the next 16 days are 3.0m 17s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (WIB) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 10AM (Sun 16th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 4AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 8ft (2.5m) 19s |
| Most Powerful | 10PM (Wed 19th Aug) | 10ft (3.0m) 17s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Bawa over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, mates, Rusty here. Let’s break down the next couple of weeks. The ocean is gonna be switching gears a lot, from clean and fun to big and heavy. We start out okay, then it gets wild, then we get another clean shot at it later on.
First up, we’re looking at Bawa for Sunday morning, August 16. Bit of cloud cover, but the wind is dead glassy from the ESE at 3 mph. That’s prime. We got head-high surf at 4.6ft, coming from the S with a long 14-second period. The energy reading is strong at 1073. It’s an exposed reef and point, so that long-period swell should be peeling nicely. Only for the advanced crew, but it’s going to be clean. Water temp is about normal for this time of year. The afternoon looks like it might get a little tricky with tides, so get on it early.
Monday the 17th, the swell drops to 2.9ft from the SW, but the wind goes onshore and it gets messy. Choppy and poor. Not worth paddling out.
Now, here’s where it starts to fire. Tuesday, August 18, the energy starts building. The morning is still glassy with a slightly bigger 3.9ft SSW swell, but the period is a massive 21 seconds. True groundswell. The energy jumps to 2435. It’s only gonna get better. By the afternoon, the swell is pumping at 7.2ft, still from the SSW, with a 19-second period. The wind is still glassy, a light 3 mph SW breeze. Energy is cranking at 3538. This is the standout of the first week. The point will be firing. That long period might make it a bit sectiony, but for the experienced crew, it’s going to be proper.
Hold on for Wednesday, August 19. This is when it gets serious. The swell is big. We’re talking 8.2ft in the morning, pushing 9.8ft by the afternoon. Solid SSW swell at 18 seconds. The energy is huge – hitting 4290 in the morning and 5169 in the afternoon. That’s strong and powerful. But, and it’s a big but, the wind goes cross-on and there’s a risk of thunderstorms. It won't be as clean as Tuesday. This is expert territory, no doubt.
Thursday the 20th holds the size, with 9.8ft in the morning and 8.2ft in the afternoon, and period drops to a still-strong 16 seconds. Wind stays cross-on with more storm risk. It’s powerful and heavy, but the surface is going to be bumpy. Only for the real chargers.
Friday the 21st, the swell starts to drop, from 6.9ft down to 5.9ft through the day. But the wind is messy and onshore, so quality is gone. It’s a choppy mess. I’d give it a miss.
The weekend of the 22nd and 23rd, the swell hangs around in the 5.6ft to 7.5ft range from the SSW. Winds stay light and cross-on, with a chance of a storm. It’s still got some push, but the surface is going to be average. Not the pick.
Early next week, the 24th and 25th, the swell backs down to 3.6ft to 4.9ft. The energy drops, and it looks marginal. The wind is light, so it's not terrible, but it's not great either. You might find a cleanish one in the mornings, but don't get too excited.
But then, a break. Wednesday morning, August 26, it goes glassy again with a small 3.6ft SSW swell at 14 seconds. The energy is down at 915, but it’s clean. Fun, small waves for the logs, but not much push.
Hold on, though. Thursday, August 27, we get our second standout. The swell jumps back up to 5.9ft in the morning and 6.2ft in the afternoon, from the SW with a long 17-second period. The wind is glassy again. The energy is back over 2000. This looks like another day of proper, clean point surf. A promising session, a real return to form.
Friday the 28th keeps the size at 5.2ft to 5.6ft, and the morning is absolutely dead calm. Zero wind. You can’t get better than that. The swell is a bit smaller but still has that long 15-16 second period. The point will be very workable.
The final stretch, August 29 to 31, sees the swell pulse again. The 30th brings 6.9ft from the SW, and then Monday morning, August 31, we get another
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 9mm), mostly falling on Mon night. Warm (max 29°C on Tue afternoon, min 27°C on Sun morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 21mm), heaviest during Thu morning. Warm (max 28°C on Wed morning, min 26°C on Thu morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | |||||||||||||||
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) | S 14 | S 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 19 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
700 | 808 | 305 | 350 | 301 | 721 | 1238 | 3441 | 2812 | 4228 | 5037 | 4902 | 4006 | 3304 | 2682 | 2144 | 1787 | 3712 | 2716 | 2308 | 1714 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | glassy | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | cross-on | glassy | glassy | cross-on | glassy | cross | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on |
High Tide | 8:33PM0.72m | 8:35AM0.68m | 9:10PM0.70m | 9:04AM0.59m | 9:48PM0.67m | 9:29AM0.50m | 10:30PM0.62m | 9:51AM0.41m | 11:26PM0.56m | 10:03AM0.34m | 00:55AM0.53m | 12:10PM0.28m | 2:41AM0.54m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 2:15PM0.03m | 2:28AM0.11m | 2:39PM0.05m | 3:07AM0.17m | 3:03PM0.08m | 3:49AM0.22m | 3:27PM0.11m | 4:39AM0.27m | 3:54PM0.14m | 6:06AM0.31m | 4:29PM0.18m | 11:24AM0.28m | 5:37PM0.22m | ||||||||
6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | |
— | 6:38 | — | — | 6:38 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | — | — | 5 | 4 | — | 7 | 7 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | 1 | — | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
Feels °C | 31 | 32 | 33 | 30 | 30 | 31 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 32 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 30 | 31 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 14 | S 14 | S 10 | SW 14 | SSE 9 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 19 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
700 | 808 | 117 | 350 | 141 | 721 | 1238 | 3441 | 2812 | 4228 | 5037 | 4902 | 4006 | 3304 | 2682 | 2144 | 1787 | 3712 | 2716 | 2308 | 1714 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 15 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SSE 9 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SSW 21 | WNW 8 | SSW 16 | W 8 | W 9 | W 8 | W 8 | W 10 | W 9 | S 21 | SSW 19 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 |
335 | 218 | 305 | 118 | 301 | 212 | 1176 | 48 | 1361 | 29 | 56 | 49 | 41 | 64 | 39 | 551 | 1497 | 55 | 49 | 59 | 51 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | S 13 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | SW 22 | SSW 13 | WSW 22 | WNW 8 | WSW 20 | WSW 20 | — | WSW 18 | WSW 18 | WSW 17 | W 16 | WNW 8 | WSW 16 | W 15 | W 15 | W 15 |
38 | 59 | 162 | 35 | 38 | 375 | 277 | 47 | 49 | 77 | 75 | — | 61 | 60 | 57 | 21 | 38 | 25 | 19 | 4 | 4 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | S 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | W 9 | — | — | — | — | — |
— | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 15 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 148 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 37 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Nias | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Indonesia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Bawa Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Bawa provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Bawa can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Bawa 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 (Bawa) 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 Bawa 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.
Are you planning a holiday in Nias? If you are looking for accommodation near Bawa, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Nias, consider staying in Afia which is 67 km (42 miles) away.











