Surf Forecasts:
Bells Beach - Bowl surf forecast from 21 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 22 Aug, 7PM (local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 14s period, SW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 22 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 15s period, SW swell with 6,965 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 21 Aug, 1PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 15s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Bells Beach - Bowl this week:
The surf forecast for Bells Beach - Bowl over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 21) at 1PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.8m and 15s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Bells Beach - Bowl in the next 16 days are 4.0m 15s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 22) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.5m 3s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 22) at 4AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1PM (Fri 21st Aug) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 15s |
| Best Surf | 7PM (Sat 22nd Aug) | 7ft (2.1m) 14s |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Sat 22nd Aug) | 13ft (4.0m) 15s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Bells Beach - Bowl over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G'day, Rusty here. It's been a quiet patch lately but the 16-day window is shaping up with a serious standout for the crew who can handle a big, heavy reef. The main action is at Bells Beach - Bowl and the story is all about that Saturday the 22nd of August.
We've got a bit of a wait for the good stuff. The first few days are for the patient. Friday the 21st is small with weak energy (354) and a cross-off wind making for average conditions. The real fire lights up on Saturday the 22nd. The wind is cross-off, but the big news is a massive 13ft SW groundswell with a solid 15-second period. The combined energy is pumping at 8819, meaning plenty of power. This is a big, powerful swell for the advanced crew only - at over 8ft it's too much for anyone but experts. The water temp is about average for the time of year at 56°F.
Sunday the 23rd backs it up with a cleaner 5ft SW groundswell (16-second period on the arvo) and light to offshore winds, but the energy drops to 1612. It's still excellent for experienced surfers. Monday the 24th stays clean with a gentle offshore and a 4ft SW swell, good for a session but nothing compared to Saturday.
Tuesday the 25th gets interesting with an afternoon glass-off as the wind turns calm. The swell is 4ft from the SW (13-second period, 745 energy), so if you can dodge the light rain in the morning, the late session could be a real clean winner. Wednesday the 26th through to Monday the 1st of September is a write-off. Strong onshores, rain, and lumpy chop kill the quality for days. This is a noticeable gap.
We get back into it on Tuesday the 1st of September with an early glassy morning. Swell is 5ft from the SW with a long 16-second period and strong energy (1202). It's an excellent window for experienced surfers but the onshore kicks in by the afternoon. Wednesday the 2nd is a set of clean small waves under offshore winds.
The final standout on the cards is Saturday the 5th of September. A long-period 5ft SW groundswell (17 seconds) with an offshore NNW breeze at 16 mph. The energy is big at 1728 and the offshore wind will hold the bowls face nicely. It's a promising call but being over a week out, treat it as a good bet rather than a lock.
This is Rusty, signing off.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 15°C on Sat morning, min 8°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 15mm), heaviest on Tue morning. Very mild (max 17°C on Mon morning, min 9°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SW 15 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 16 | SSW 15 | SW 14 | SSW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SSW 12 | SSW 13 | SW 13 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SW 18 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 273 | 194 | 675 | 6965 | 6359 | 1426 | 877 | 1101 | 770 | 597 | 320 | 494 | 632 | 577 | 565 | 260 | 437 | 241 | 176 | 135 | 931 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | off | off | off | cross-off | cross-on | glassy | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 4:50PM1.71m | 6:00AM1.66m | 5:19PM1.62m | 6:47AM1.56m | 5:50PM1.52m | 7:46AM1.48m | 6:27PM1.43m | 9:06AM1.44m | 7:25PM1.34m | 10:33AM1.47m | 9:05PM1.28m | 11:36AM1.55m | 10:46PM1.32m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 11:06AM0.74m | 11:24PM0.30m | 11:40AM0.86m | 00:01AM0.39m | 12:19PM0.97m | 00:44AM0.47m | 1:11PM1.07m | 1:38AM0.55m | 2:36PM1.14m | 2:51AM0.60m | 4:31PM1.11m | 4:11AM0.61m | 5:46PM1.00m | ||||||||
 |  |  |  | |  | | | | | |  |  |  |  |  | | | | | | |
 | 7:01 | — | — | 7:00 | — | — | 6:58 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — |
 | — | 5:51 | — | — | 5:51 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:53 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:55 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 14 | 13 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 11 | 17 | 17 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 12 |
Feels °C | 10 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 9 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 16 | SSW 15 | SW 14 | SSW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SSW 12 | SSW 13 | SW 13 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SW 18 |
| kJ | 273 | 167 | 675 | 1832 | 1888 | 1426 | 877 | 1101 | 770 | 597 | 320 | 494 | 632 | 577 | 565 | 260 | 437 | 241 | 176 | 135 | 931 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 20 | SW 18 | SW 8 | SW 24 | SSW 22 | SW 20 | SW 18 | SW 16 | S 14 | W 21 | SW 15 | SW 18 | WSW 17 | SW 16 | — | SW 14 | SW 18 | S 5 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 18 |
| kJ | 60 | 194 | 45 | 22 | 45 | 134 | 316 | 511 | 33 | 9 | 75 | 50 | 487 | 132 | — | 248 | 49 | 11 | 55 | 74 | 844 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 16 | SW 6 | — | — | — | SSW 16 | — | — | — | — | SW 20 | S 13 | — | S 14 | — | — | — | SW 16 | WSW 12 | SW 21 | S 19 |
| kJ | 5 | 18 | — | — | — | 81 | — | — | — | — | 15 | 31 | — | 36 | — | — | — | 65 | 15 | 72 | 7 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 6 | NW 3 | WNW 3 | SW 15 | SW 14 | — | — | — | — | N 3 | NNE 4 | — | — | — | SSW 4 | S 5 | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 16 | 2 | 3 | 6965 | 6359 | — | — | — | — | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | 12 | 19 | — | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 6 | 0 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 75 | 11 | 33 | 33 | 19 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Torquay | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
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 Bells Beach - Bowl 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 Bells Beach - Bowl Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Bells Beach - Bowl provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Bells Beach - Bowl can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Bells Beach - Bowl 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 (Bells Beach - Bowl) 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 Bells Beach - Bowl 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.
Bells Beach - Bowl is 26 km (16 miles) from the city of Geelong. If you plan a holiday in Torquay, look for hotels and other accommodation in Geelong. Geelong has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest