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Big Bay Surf Forecast
/ Cape Town (70 surf breaks) /
Surf Forecasts:
Big Bay surfForecast / Cape Town / South Africa
48hr Weather and Surf, issued 7 am Tuesday 19 May 2026 SASTForecast update in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Big Bay surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's Big Bay sea temperature is
15.9° C
(Which is 1.1°C colder than average for this time of year)How big are the waves at Big Bay today?
The current surf forecast for Big Bay at 12PM is: 1.6m 9s primary swell from a South direction and 1.1m 13s secondary swell from a West-southwest direction (forecast issued at 07:00am May 19). The wind direction is predicted to be offshore and the swell rating is 3.
| Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height | Wave Period |
|---|---|---|
| Morning (19 May) | 7.5ft (2.3m) | 9s |
| Afternoon (19 May) | 6ft (1.9m) | 9s |
| Evening (19 May) | 6.5ft (2.0m) | 9s |
Table - waves today at Big Bay. (Swell directed towards the surf break)
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Short Range ForecastSome drizzle, heaviest during Wed afternoon. Warm (max 21°C on Wed afternoon, min 15°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 19 | Wednesday 20 | Thursday 21 | Fri 22 | |||||||||||||||||||||
5 AM | 8 AM | 11 AM | 2 PM | 5 PM | 8 PM | 11 PM | 2 AM | 5 AM | 8 AM | 11 AM | 2 PM | 5 PM | 8 PM | 11 PM | 2 AM | 5 AM | 8 AM | 11 AM | 2 PM | 5 PM | 8 PM | 11 PM | 2 AM | |
Swell Height Map |    |    |    |    | ||||||||||||||||||||
SSE 9 | SSE 9 | WSW 13 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 20 | SW 12 | SW 19 | SW 18 | |
732 | 870 | 459 | 592 | 606 | 644 | 611 | 279 | 279 | 216 | 180 | 125 | 121 | 82 | 79 | 71 | 114 | 111 | 138 | 120 | 116 | 144 | 183 | 258 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | off | off | off | glassy | cross-on | glassy | glassy | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | on | on | cross-on | cross | |
High Tide | 5:17PM1.46m | 5:35AM1.43m | 6:11PM1.39m | 6:32AM1.30m | 7:13PM1.32m | |||||||||||||||||||
Low Tide | 11:02AM0.07m | 11:26PM0.21m | 11:52AM0.18m | 00:25AM0.31m | 12:48PM0.29m | 1:34AM0.40m | ||||||||||||||||||
 |  | | |  |  | | | |  | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 7:33 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:35 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:35 |
 | — | — | — | — | 5:51 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | 5:49 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Temp °C | 17 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 15 |
15 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 21 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 17 | 15 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 8 | S 8 | S 8 | S 8 | S 8 | S 7 | S 7 | S 7 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 |
 kJ | 473 | 516 | 459 | 405 | 377 | 384 | 332 | 279 | 279 | 216 | 143 | 103 | 78 | 76 | 71 | 51 | 50 | 37 | 138 | 120 | 116 | 144 | 140 | 128 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | SW 14 | SW 13 | S 7 | S 7 | S 7 | S 7 | SW 19 | SW 18 |
| kJ | 659 | 536 | 458 | 414 | 414 | 346 | 330 | 260 | 230 | 184 | 180 | 125 | 121 | 82 | 79 | 47 | 114 | 111 | 36 | 36 | 24 | 23 | 183 | 258 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | S 16 | S 16 | S 15 | S 15 | — | — | — | SW 19 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SW 14 | SW 14 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | WSW 21 | SW 20 | SW 20 | S 6 | SSW 6 |
| kJ | — | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | — | — | — | 14 | 11 | 10 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 74 | 71 | 46 | 45 | 12 | 43 | 98 | 134 | 22 | 24 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | — | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NW 2 | NW 3 | NW 3 | NW 3 | — |
| kJ | 732 | 870 | — | 592 | 606 | 644 | 611 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 2 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Cape Town | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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