
Surf Forecasts:
Buffalo Bay Wildside surf forecast from 7 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 9 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 12s period, SW swell with onshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 10 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 13s period, SSW swell with 3,978 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 7 Jul, 5PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 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 Tuesday (Jul 07) at 5PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.8m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m 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 3.5m 13s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Jul 10) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 6s period and expected on Saturday (Jul 11) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5PM (Tue 7th Jul) | 6ft (1.8m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Thu 9th Jul) | 10ft (3.0m) 12s |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Fri 10th Jul) | 11ft (3.5m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Buffalo Bay Wildside over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Alright folks, Rusty here, and I’ve been looking over the charts for Buffalo Bay Wildside. Let me tell you, this is a bit of a mixed bag. The water is sitting at about 62°F which is pretty much what you’d expect for this time of year, nothing weird going on there.
We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but things start to show some promise on Tuesday, 7 July. Tuesday morning is a bit of a tease with a 6ft southwest swell and a 12 second period, but a light cross-on wind keeps it a bit bumpy. However, Tuesday afternoon is where it gets interesting. The wind goes glassy, dead calm, and that southwest swell holds at 6ft with that same 12 second period. The energy is strong out there, and conditions look absolutely pristine for an experienced surfer. That’s the standout of the first week right there.
Wednesday and Thursday, 8 and 9 July, see the swell building but the wind turns against us, going cross-on and onshore, making things choppy and mushy. By Thursday, the swell hits 10ft with a 14 second period, but that's just too much juice for this break and it’s blown out.
Friday the 10th though – pay attention now. The swell is still a solid 12ft from the southwest, with a 13-second period, and the wind goes glassy again in the morning. The raw energy is massive – this is big, powerful groundswell. This is only for the experts. It’s going to be clean and lined up, but you better know what you’re doing. The afternoon turns cross-offshore, keeping it clean.
After that, the swell drops a bit for the weekend but Saturday the 11th gets ruined by strong cross-shore winds and rain. Sunday the 12th brightens up with clean glassy conditions and a smaller 5ft south-southwest swell – a much friendlier size for intermediates. That’s your best bet for a fun, manageable session.
The second week gets a bit chaotic. Monday the 13th through Tuesday the 14th give us clean, glassy mornings with smaller swell from the east-southeast around 5ft to 6ft, but the period is shorter, around 8-9 seconds. It’s clean but the waves will be a bit weaker. Then a strong westerly wind blows in on Wednesday the 15th, trashing the surf.
The end of the week, from Thursday the 16th onwards, sees the swell pumping again, but it’s consistently too big, well over 8ft, and often too straight for this beach-and-reef setup. For the kite surfers out there, Thursday the 16th afternoon onwards with a 10ft southwest swell and strong onshore winds looks like a wild playground.
So for paddle surfing, your best windows are Tuesday afternoon the 7th for a glassy, solid swell, and Friday morning the 10th if you’re an expert after a big, clean groundswell.
Rusty, signing off.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Wed night. Very mild (max 18°C on Wed afternoon, min 11°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Sat morning. Very mild (max 17°C on Sun afternoon, min 11°C on Fri morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 7 | Wednesday 8 | Thursday 9 | Friday 10 | Saturday 11 | Sunday 12 | Monday 13 | |||||||||||||||
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 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
1065 | 970 | 1498 | 1569 | 1544 | 2428 | 3364 | 2904 | 3978 | 3890 | 3287 | 2548 | 2210 | 1200 | 735 | 478 | 415 | 298 | 394 | 508 | 540 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | glassy | cross-off | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | on | glassy | glassy | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross | off | glassy | cross-off | off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 8:36PM1.48m | 9:05AM1.23m | 9:46PM1.44m | 10:33AM1.20m | 11:10PM1.43m | 12:05PM1.25m | 00:31AM1.50m | 1:19PM1.36m | 1:38AM1.60m | 2:17PM1.51m | 2:34AM1.69m | 3:08PM1.65m | 3:23AM1.77m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 2:05PM0.42m | 3:05AM0.50m | 3:08PM0.50m | 4:23AM0.51m | 4:29PM0.55m | 5:49AM0.47m | 6:00PM0.52m | 7:05AM0.37m | 7:18PM0.42m | 8:06AM0.25m | 8:21PM0.30m | 8:57AM0.13m | 9:15PM0.19m | ||||||||
7:33 | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | |
— | 5:31 | — | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | 5:34 | — | — | 5:34 | — | — | 5:35 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 2 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 17 | 14 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 15 |
Feels °C | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SE 7 | SSW 11 | E 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 |
1065 | 970 | 1498 | 1569 | 1544 | 2428 | 3364 | 2904 | 3978 | 3890 | 3287 | 2548 | 2210 | 1200 | 735 | 187 | 415 | 191 | 394 | 508 | 540 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | ESE 9 | SE 17 | SE 16 | SE 15 | SE 14 | E 13 | — | W 13 | SSE 7 | SSE 7 | SSW 11 | SSE 7 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 |
68 | 58 | 38 | 283 | 601 | 8 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 3 | — | 12 | 66 | 197 | 478 | 41 | 265 | 227 | 186 | 205 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | S 22 | SSW 20 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | E 10 | — | — | — | SE 14 | — | — | — | — | E 6 | SW 16 | SSW 16 | SE 7 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | S 12 |
— | 9 | 76 | 31 | 18 | 2 | — | — | — | 7 | — | — | — | — | 38 | 10 | 25 | 75 | 12 | 12 | 12 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | SW 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ESE 6 | SE 7 | E 7 | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | — | — | — |
— | — | — | — | 254 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 92 | 298 | 72 | 181 | 298 | — | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 41 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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.










