Surf Forecasts:
Buffalo Bay Wildside surf forecast from 28 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 2 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 19s period, SSW swell with onshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 2 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 15ft (4.5m), 17s period, SSW swell with 10,586 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 28 Aug, 5PM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 11s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Buffalo Bay Wildside this week:
The surf forecast for Buffalo Bay Wildside over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 28) at 5PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.2m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 1.2m and 10s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Buffalo Bay Wildside in the next 16 days are 4.5m 17s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 02) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.7m 14s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5PM (Fri 28th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Wed 2nd Sep) | 11ft (3.5m) 19s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Wed 2nd Sep) | 15ft (4.5m) 17s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Buffalo Bay Wildside over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the table for Buffalo Bay Wildside out of the gate. Things start off a bit slow, but there’s a window of really good surf if you time it right.
Right now, the water temp sits at 60.3°F, which is 2.7°F colder than usual for this time of year – that’s a noticeable chill, so you’ll want the steamer.
We kick things off on Friday, August 28th. It’s not pumping, but there’s something to work with. The morning brings 4.3ft of S swell, with a long 11-second period, but the combined energy is just moderate (718). The wind is light offshore though, so it’ll be clean. The afternoon is the pick of the day – swell drops a whisker to 3.9ft from the S, but the wind goes glassy. It’s not big, but with conditions that clean, you’ll get some fun little runners. Keep your expectations in check – this break is inconsistent, so it’s not a guarantee.
Saturday the 29th is a write-off in the morning with a 9 mph cross-onshore messing up the 3.3ft swell. The afternoon glass-off returns with a tiny 2.6ft SSE swell. It’s rideable for the longboard but hardly a standout.
Sunday the 30th gets interesting. The morning is a bit meh with light rain and a 5.9ft SW swell, but the afternoon – hold onto your board. The wind goes completely glassy, the swell jumps to 6.9ft from the SW, with a 12-second period and strong energy (1252). That’s excellent quality for experienced surfers. The swell is getting up there in size, so beginners should sit this one out. The long period means it’ll have some grunt, but at a beach break it might be a little straight – still, with glass, it’s the best session of the early window.
Monday the 31st is a step back – 5.2ft SW swell both sessions, but with onshore wind and marginal conditions. Not worth rushing out.
Tuesday, September 1st has some size – 6.9ft in the morning and 7.5ft by afternoon, both SW. The morning has light cross-onshore bumps, the afternoon gets a 12 mph onshore breeze and a 13-second period, giving it plenty of energy (1774). It’s not clean enough to be a standout.
We get a massive swell pulse on Wednesday, September 2nd. 14.8ft from the SSW in the morning, 17-second period – that’s serious groundswell with extreme energy (10610). But it’s way too big for this break. Same for the afternoon: 13.1ft from the SW. This is strictly for experts, and even then, it might be just pure chaos.
Thursday, September 3rd sees the swell drop to 6.9-8.2ft from the SW, with clean cross-offshore wind from the ENE/ESE. The combined energy is still strong (2573 in the morning). This is solid, powerful surf, but it’s right on the edge of being too big for most. The 22 mph wind in the afternoon will add some bump despite being cross-off.
The first week of September is a bit of a miss. Friday the 4th is blown out by 28 mph cross-offshore wind and 13.1-14.8ft of short-period fetch swell – this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. Saturday the 5th brings a 19.7ft ESE swell – that's pure danger for this spot, and the wind is clean but the size is only for the absolute madmen.
Sunday, September 6th has the glassy morning back with 9.8ft of ESE swell, but again, that’s too big for a comfortable session for most folks. It’s a clear ‘too big’ call.
We finally get a window of manageable waves again starting Monday, September 7th. The morning is marginal with 4.3ft from the E, but the afternoon is clean with cross-offshore wind and 3.6ft from the E. It’s small but clean.
Tuesday, September 8th drops to 3.0ft SW swell with onshore wind – not worth it.
Wednesday, September 9th morning has tiny 2.6ft SW swell, but the afternoon brings 5.2ft from the SSW with only a 7-second period. The period is short, so the waves will be crumbly. Clean wind though.
The rest of the run into the second week is marginal at best. Thursday the 10th has messy cross-onshore chop, and Friday the 11th has some 6.6ft ESE swell with a short 9-second period and cross-sh
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Sat night. Warm (max 21°C on Fri afternoon, min 12°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Wed night. Very mild (max 16°C on Tue afternoon, min 11°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | |||||||||||||||
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 11 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | SSE 11 | SW 10 | SW 10 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SSW 17 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SE 8 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
403 | 338 | 358 | 251 | 167 | 330 | 602 | 1169 | 840 | 663 | 611 | 574 | 1083 | 1750 | 1677 | 10586 | 8390 | 4314 | 2567 | 1357 | 1550 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | glassy | cross | cross-on | glassy | on | on | glassy | glassy | on | on | off | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 3:59PM1.84m | 4:08AM1.76m | 4:26PM1.89m | 4:37AM1.76m | 4:54PM1.90m | 5:06AM1.72m | 5:24PM1.85m | 5:38AM1.64m | 5:57PM1.76m | 6:13AM1.53m | 6:34PM1.62m | 6:54AM1.38m | 7:20PM1.45m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 9:46AM0.05m | 10:07PM0.09m | 10:13AM0.01m | 10:35PM0.06m | 10:40AM0.01m | 11:05PM0.06m | 11:09AM0.05m | 11:36PM0.12m | 11:40AM0.14m | 00:11AM0.21m | 12:14PM0.26m | 00:51AM0.35m | 12:56PM0.42m | 1:45AM0.51m | |||||||
6:52 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:47 | — | — | 6:46 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | |
— | 6:06 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:08 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | 6 | 10 | 11 | 6 |
Temp °C | 19 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 15 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 15 |
Feels °C | 18 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 8 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | ESE 10 | S 11 | S 11 | SSE 11 | SW 10 | SW 10 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SSW 17 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 |
403 | 276 | 358 | 251 | 167 | 330 | 602 | 1169 | 840 | 663 | 611 | 574 | 1083 | 1750 | 1677 | 10586 | 8390 | 4314 | 2567 | 1357 | 471 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 10 | S 11 | SW 14 | E 11 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SW 13 | E 11 | E 11 | E 11 | E 11 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | — | SSW 11 |
313 | 338 | 197 | 151 | 175 | 241 | 331 | 63 | 37 | 37 | 37 | 33 | 31 | 16 | 30 | 24 | 14 | 13 | 6 | — | 194 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 11 | SSE 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | E 11 | E 12 | E 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 7 | SE 10 | — | S 11 | S 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
47 | 160 | 155 | 162 | 123 | 98 | 64 | 20 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 4 | — | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 3 | — | E 10 | WSW 3 | SW 4 | SW 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 4 | — | — | — | — | — | SSE 7 | SE 8 |
2 | — | 184 | 7 | 18 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | 553 | 1550 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 38 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 19 | 3 | 694 | 798 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Garden Route | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Buffalo Bay Wildside Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Buffalo Bay Wildside provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Buffalo Bay Wildside can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Buffalo Bay Wildside 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 (Buffalo Bay Wildside) 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 Buffalo Bay Wildside 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 Garden Route? If you are looking for accommodation near Buffalo Bay Wildside, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Garden Route, consider staying in Knysna which is 8 km (5 miles) away. Other places in and around Garden Route where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Plettenberg Bay which is 36 km (22 miles) away, George, Mossel Bay and Oudtshoorn.











