Buffalo Bay Wildside Surf Break

Lat Long: 34.08° S 22.98° E

Buffalo Bay Wildside Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 7 pm 22 Jul 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Buffalo Bay Wildside sea temperature is
17.4° C
0.1° 

Buffalo Bay Wildside surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Buffalo Bay Wildside surf forecast from 22 Jul 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Thursday 23 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 12s period, SW swell with cross-onshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Friday 24 Jul, 5AM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 16s period, SSW swell with 7,971 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 23 Jul, 5AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 12s period with SW 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 Thursday (Jul 23) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.4m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 1.3m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Buffalo Bay Wildside in the next 16 days are 4.0m 16s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Jul 24) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.0m 5s period and expected on Saturday (Jul 25) at 11PM.

Wave TypeTime (SAST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 5AM (Thu 23rd Jul)4.5ft (1.4m) 12s
Best Surf11PM (Thu 23rd Jul)10ft (3.0m) 12s
Most Powerful 5AM (Fri 24th Jul)13ft (4.0m) 16s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Buffalo Bay Wildside over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what Buffalo Bay Wildside has in store for us over the next couple of weeks. This is a bit of a mixed bag, with some serious size early on and then a nice, long clean run later. The water temp is sitting around 63°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

The first few days are really for the experienced crew only. Wednesday the 22nd kicks off with a 7ft SW swell, but the wind is a bit messy and the energy is moderate (1504). Thursday the 23rd gets bigger, hitting 10ft by the afternoon, but with a strong cross-onshore wind at 16 mph and a combined energy of 2203, the conditions are poor – that's one to skip for now.

Now, Friday the 24th is where it gets interesting. We’ve got a very long-period 16-second groundswell from the SSW pushing in at 12ft. The combined energy is a strong 6402! The wind is light offshore from the ENE early on, so it’ll be clean. However, this is serious size – over 8ft – so this is expert territory only, and that 16-second period might make it break a bit straight at a beach setup like this. The afternoon is still big at 10ft with a 15-second period, but the wind swings cross-offshore. Still, only for the brave.

Saturday the 25th and Sunday the 26th ease off a bit, with 8ft to 6ft SW swell. The wind stays clean, and Sunday afternoon even goes glassy. The energy is moderate (1243 to 2309). Conditions are excellent for experienced surfers. Monday the 27th continues this nice clean spell, with 6ft swell and glassy conditions in the morning. Tuesday the 28th sees a bump in size to 8ft with strong energy (4329) and clean conditions – a standout run for those who can handle it.

Wednesday the 29th through Friday the 31st of July and into the first weekend of August is where the real gold is for everyone else. The swell settles down to a very manageable 4ft to 7ft, with the wind often glassy or light offshore. This is the pick of the entire forecast. Friday the 31st morning is dead glassy with 5ft swell, and Saturday August 1st is also glassy with 4ft. Sunday the 2nd has a 6ft swell with a very long 16-second period and glassy conditions – that’s a beautiful combination for a point or reef break, but at a beach break, that long period might make it a bit straight. The combined energy is moderate to strong (1150 to 2389).

The beginning of Monday August 3rd is still clean with a nice 5ft to 5ft swell. But Tuesday the 4th and Wednesday the 5th turn ugly with strong cross-onshore winds and messy conditions – best to stay home. The energy drops right off.

Now, here’s the real wild card: Thursday August 6th. The models are showing a massive 16ft to 23ft SW swell, with an incredible 17-second period and combined energy of 24795. The wind is light offshore or glassy. This is a monster. At over 8ft, it's only for experts, and at a beach break with that period, it might just be a closeout. Honestly, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. It's a long way off, so take it with a grain of salt, but if it comes together, it'll be a show.

So, to wrap it up: the real standouts are the glassy mornings from Friday July 31st through to Monday August 3rd. That's your window for clean, fun, manageable surf. The big Friday the 24th and Thursday August 6th are only for the absolute top-tier crew, and I'd be cautious about the long period at this break.

Stay safe out there.
Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Moderate rain (total 10mm), heaviest on Thu night. Very mild (max 19°C on Sat afternoon, min 12°C on Wed night). Mainly fresh winds.

Days 5-7 Weather Summary

Moderate rain (total 17mm), heaviest on Tue morning. Warm (max 23°C on Sun afternoon, min 14°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Sun night, fresh winds from the E by Tue morning).

Thursday
23
Friday
24
Saturday
25
Sunday
26
Monday
27
Tuesday
28
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
3
2
0
5
!
!
4
4
4
4
4
4
3
3
3
3
!
!
!
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1.4
SW
12
2.2
SW
12
3
SW
11
2.3
SSW
17
3.5
SSW
16
3
SSW
15
2.5
SW
14
2.3
SW
13
2.4
SW
13
2.3
SW
12
1.9
SW
12
1.7
SW
12
1.8
SW
13
1.9
SW
12
1.9
SW
12
2.4
SW
16
3
SSW
16
3.5
SSW
16
3
SSW
15
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
599
1258
2032
3099
6350
4117
2471
1838
1975
1518
1013
747
1109
1065
1029
2808
3936
5672
3393
Wind (km/h)
5
WNW
10
W
30
SW
10
WSW
5
NE
10
ESE
5
N
5
E
15
E
10
N
5
N
5
SE
10
W
10
WSW
20
ESE
30
ESE
35
E
25
E
15
E
Wind State
cross
cross-on
on
on
off
cross-off
glassy
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
glassy
glassy
cross-on
cross-on
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
High Tide
9:54PM1.22m
10:58AM1.05m
11:34PM1.19m
12:41PM1.10m
00:56AM1.24m
1:43PM1.21m
1:50AM1.33m
2:24PM1.32m
2:30AM1.44m
2:59PM1.44m
3:04AM1.53m
3:30PM1.55m
3:35AM1.61m
Low Tide
4:36AM0.69m
4:43PM0.75m
6:22AM0.67m
6:36PM0.72m
7:32AM0.58m
7:43PM0.63m
8:16AM0.47m
8:26PM0.52m
8:50AM0.36m
9:01PM0.42m
9:20AM0.26m
9:32PM0.33m
part cloud
clear
light rain
rain showers
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
light rain
mod rain
light rain
light rain
part cloud
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:26
7:26
7:26
7:24
7:24
7:24
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:40
5:40
5:42
5:43
5:43
5:44
5:45
 mm
2
8
1
6
5
5
Temp °C
14
17
17
14
14
17
14
16
19
16
21
23
18
17
17
16
16
16
16
Feels °C
12
14
12
12
12
15
13
14
16
13
19
21
17
16
18
13
11
13
13
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
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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.

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