Surf Forecasts:
Big Bay surf forecast from 13 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 17 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 13s period, SW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 16 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 14s period, WSW swell with 3,599 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 17 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 13s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Big Bay this week:
The surf forecast for Big Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 17) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.6m and 13s period with a secondary swell of 1.2m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Big Bay in the next 16 days are 3.0m 14s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 16) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.9m 6s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 17) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5AM (Thu 17th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Thu 17th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 13s |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Wed 16th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Big Bay over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let’s cut to the chase. The surf’s a bit slow to start, but there’s some good stuff on the horizon, especially for the more advanced surfers.
For the first couple of days, it’s looking pretty grim. Sunday afternoon we’ve got some 1.8m southwest swell, but the wind is onshore and there’s rain about. It’s just messy. The water is a freezing 13°, which is well below average for this time of year, so you’ll want the steamer. The energy is moderate (1286) but it’s not doing much.
Monday and Tuesday are a complete write-off. The swell drops, and we’ve got fresh cross-onshore winds. Just forget it.
Wednesday morning shows a bit more promise with a 2.4m pulse, but the conditions are still marginal. The wind is cross-offshore, which helps, and the energy is up to 2735, so there’s some push. It’s not perfect, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Then we get some cleaner days on Thursday and Friday. Swell drops to the 1.7m range, but the wind eases off. Friday morning is shaping up nicely with a light cross-offshore breeze. This is where the surf starts to get good.
The standout of the first week is definitely Saturday the 19th. We’ve got 1.4m of clean southwest swell with 12-second period, and it’s glassy. No wind at all. This is going to be super clean and fun.
The second week kicks off with some decent waves on Sunday and Monday, but the winds are a bit fresher. Then things really fire up on Thursday the 24th. We’re looking at a solid 2.1m of long-period groundswell, 14-15 seconds, with a proper offshore wind. The energy is in the 2000s – that’s a strong push. This is the biggest, cleanest swell of the whole period. A proper standout for the experienced crew.
Friday the 25th is still good, but it starts to get a bit cross-shore. Saturday looks choppy with onshore winds again. We round it out with some cleaner, smaller surf on the Sunday and Monday.
So, two days stand out: Saturday the 19th for the glassy conditions, and Thursday the 24th for the size and power. Both are at Big Bay, which is exposed to the southwest and gets the swell direction right. It’s a fairly consistent break, so there’s always a chance, but be prepared for crowds, especially on the good days.
That 15-second period on the 24th is proper groundswell, which can be a bit tricky at beach breaks, but it’ll be great here.
So, get on it for the 19th, and definitely don’t miss the 24th.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 31mm), heaviest during Tue night. Very mild (max 17°C on Sun afternoon, min 12°C on Tue night). Winds increasing (light winds from the W on Sun afternoon, fresh winds from the NW by Tue afternoon). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Fri afternoon, min 12°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the SSE on Wed afternoon, calm by Sat morning). | |||||||||||||||||||
Sun 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | Saturday 19 | ||||||||||||||
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 14 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | NW 8 | SW 18 | SW 16 | WSW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 1215 | 732 | 430 | 272 | 244 | 165 | 813 | 3599 | 2284 | 799 | 838 | 880 | 872 | 626 | 713 | 976 | 987 | 514 | 891 | 690 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross-off | cross-off | off | glassy | cross | glassy |
High Tide | 4:29PM1.62m | 4:48AM1.45m | 4:59PM1.52m | 5:18AM1.35m | 5:29PM1.40m | 5:49AM1.24m | 6:00PM1.27m | 6:24AM1.13m | 6:36PM1.13m | 7:10AM1.01m | 7:30PM1.00m | 8:48AM0.92m | 9:37PM0.93m | |||||||
Low Tide | 10:45PM0.07m | 10:49AM0.16m | 11:15PM0.17m | 11:18AM0.26m | 11:44PM0.28m | 11:48AM0.38m | 00:15AM0.41m | 12:20PM0.51m | 00:53AM0.53m | 1:03PM0.63m | 2:02AM0.64m | 2:56PM0.73m | 4:47AM0.65m | |||||||
 |  | |  |  |  | |  | | |  |  | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | — | 6:47 | — | — | 6:46 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — |
 | 6:36 | — | — | 6:36 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:38 | — | — | 6:39 | — |
mm | 4 | 5 | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | 19 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 21 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 18 |
Feels °C | 15 | 15 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 16 | WSW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 |
| kJ | 1215 | 732 | 430 | 272 | 220 | 165 | 813 | 3599 | 2284 | 796 | 838 | 880 | 872 | 626 | 713 | 976 | 987 | 514 | 891 | 690 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 8 | SSE 7 | S 7 | SSE 7 | S 13 | SW 18 | WSW 8 | SW 15 | WSW 13 | W 13 | W 13 | W 12 | — | — | — | — | SW 16 | SW 14 | — | SSE 6 |
| kJ | 39 | 26 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 152 | 64 | 309 | 451 | 799 | 389 | 144 | — | — | — | — | 40 | 407 | — | 46 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SSE 7 | — | — |
| kJ | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 37 | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | NNW 4 | NW 5 | NW 6 | NW 8 | NW 5 | NW 6 | — | S 5 | S 7 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | S 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 7 | SE 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 |
| kJ | — | 25 | 79 | 220 | 244 | 117 | 196 | — | 53 | 368 | 198 | 119 | 258 | 128 | 100 | 197 | 66 | 109 | 100 | 77 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 29 | 2 | 87 | 185 | 36 | 192 | 232 | 2 | 56 | 340 | 0 | 129 | 166 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Cape Town | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 Big Bay 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 Big Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Big Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Big Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Big Bay 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 (Big Bay) 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 Big Bay 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.
Big Bay is 8 km (5 miles) from the very large city of Robben Island. If you plan a holiday in Cape Town, look for hotels and other accommodation in Robben Island. Robben Island has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as cheap car hire and transport links.
Nearest