
Surf Forecasts:
Caves Beach surf forecast from 28 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 30 Jul, 10AM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 11s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 2 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 13s period, SSE swell with 965 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 30 Jul, 1AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 6s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Caves Beach this week:
The surf forecast for Caves Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 30) at 1AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.8m and 6s period with a secondary swell of 0.2m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Caves Beach in the next 16 days are 1.7m 13s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 02) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.6m 3s period and expected on Wednesday (Jul 29) at 7PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1AM (Thu 30th Jul) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 6s |
| Best Surf | 10AM (Thu 30th Jul) | 6ft (1.8m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Sun 2nd Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Caves Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, surfers, Rusty here. We’ve got one spot on the radar for this 16-day stretch, and it’s a bit of a mixed bag, so let’s get into it.
The first real action we’re seeing is a bit of a slow start. It’s a quiet run until the morning of Thursday, 30 July. That’s when things start to wake up at Caves Beach. The water temp is sitting around 64°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year.
Thursday morning the 30th is where it’s at early on. A solid 6 ft south swell, period around 11 seconds, with a light cross-offshore breeze. The energy is there with a reading of 721, and it’s looking clean. That’s a good session.
Friday morning, 31 July, keeps that momentum. Another 6 ft south swell, again with a light cross-offshore wind, and the energy is still pumping at 666. That’s another top pick.
Saturday morning, 1 August, drops a touch to 5 ft from the south, but still with a light offshore wind, giving you clean 352 energy. It’s a solid, fun morning.
Now, Sunday morning, 2 August, is a real standout. We’ve got a 6 ft south-southeast groundswell with a long 13-second period, and the energy is massive at 981. Light cross-offshore wind too. That’s a long-period swell, which means it’ll have more power and better shape, but it might be a bit too lined-up for a beach break; still, the quality is high.
After that, it gets a bit gnarly. Monday, 3 August, is a write-off with strong onshore winds, and Tuesday, 4 August, brings a massive 8 ft to 10 ft south swell, but it’s crossed up and messy. That’s big, over 8 ft, so only for the experts, and even then, the wind is not playing nice.
Wednesday, 5 August, through Friday, 7 August, sees another big pulse of 10 ft and 8 ft swell, but the wind is onshore or cross-shore, making it a lumpy, choppy mess. The size is there, but the quality is not. It’s more of a kite day than a paddle day if you ask me.
We get a bit of a reset on Saturday, 8 August, with a smaller 4 ft east swell. It’s clean in the morning, but the afternoon gets choppy. Sunday, 9 August, is a gem with a glassy 4 ft east swell, light offshore winds, and clean conditions. A nice little session.
Monday, 10 August, and Tuesday, 11 August, offer clean 3 ft and 4 ft east swells in the mornings, with good energy readings. The Tuesday afternoon swell jumps to 6 ft from the east-northeast, but it gets crossed up. The best of the week is that Sunday morning glass-off.
The run finishes with Wednesday, 12 August, a clean 4 ft east swell in the morning, then turning choppy in the afternoon. It’s a typical pattern for this area: a few good days, then a big, messy pulse, then a clean-up.
Overall, the best on offer is the Sunday morning, 2 August, with that long-period groundswell and clean conditions, and the glassy Sunday morning, 9 August, for a more relaxed session.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 20°C on Tue afternoon, min 8°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the WSW on Wed morning, calm by Thu night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Fri night. Very mild (max 19°C on Sun morning, min 11°C on Fri morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 28 | Wednesday 29 | Thursday 30 | Friday 31 | Saturday 1 | Sunday 2 | Monday 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 8 | S 7 | S 9 | S 18 | S 16 | S 6 | S 11 | S 10 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 16 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | SE 12 | SSE 11 | S 8 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
42 | 16 | 13 | 24 | 5 | 54 | 716 | 426 | 942 | 658 | 563 | 440 | 347 | 238 | 419 | 965 | 727 | 472 | 303 | 251 | 334 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-off | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross | cross |
High Tide | 7:33PM1.39m | 8:15AM0.96m | 8:08PM1.43m | 8:50AM1.02m | 8:44PM1.45m | 9:24AM1.08m | 9:20PM1.45m | 10:00AM1.13m | 9:57PM1.42m | 10:36AM1.16m | 10:36PM1.35m | 11:15AM1.19m | 11:18PM1.26m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 12:55PM0.34m | 2:19AM0.13m | 1:37PM0.30m | 2:51AM0.09m | 2:18PM0.28m | 3:23AM0.07m | 2:59PM0.26m | 3:56AM0.07m | 3:41PM0.26m | 4:30AM0.09m | 4:25PM0.27m | 5:06AM0.13m | 5:13PM0.30m | ||||||||
6:48 | — | — | 6:47 | — | — | 6:46 | — | — | 6:45 | — | — | 6:45 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | |
— | 5:12 | — | — | 5:12 | — | — | 5:13 | — | — | 5:14 | — | — | 5:14 | — | — | 5:15 | — | — | 5:15 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
Temp °C | 19 | 20 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 14 |
Feels °C | 14 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 15 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 8 | S 7 | S 9 | S 8 | S 7 | S 6 | S 11 | S 10 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | SE 12 | SSE 11 | S 8 |
42 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 1 | 54 | 716 | 426 | 942 | 658 | 563 | 440 | 347 | 238 | 213 | 965 | 727 | 472 | 303 | 251 | 334 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 6 | S 16 | ENE 6 | NE 6 | E 6 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | NE 7 | NE 7 | NE 7 | SE 20 | SSE 16 | E 17 | E 8 | NE 8 | E 16 | E 15 | SSE 10 |
19 | 14 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 419 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 18 | 72 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 14 | SE 15 | SE 14 | S 18 | SE 6 | S 16 | E 12 | E 12 | E 13 | E 13 | E 13 | E 13 | E 12 | E 7 | E 18 | S 23 | E 17 | E 16 | E 7 | S 16 | E 15 |
7 | 8 | 8 | 24 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 17 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 2 | NW 3 | NW 2 | NW 3 | WSW 4 | WSW 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NNE 3 | — | — | SSW 4 | S 4 | — |
1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | 4 | 23 | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 10 | 66 | 198 | 198 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 53 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 116 | 150 | 72 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Newcastle | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Caves Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Caves Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Caves Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Caves Beach 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 (Caves Beach) 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 Caves Beach 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.
Caves Beach is 7 km (4 miles) from the city of Catherine Hill Bay. If you plan a holiday in Newcastle, look for hotels and other accommodation in Catherine Hill Bay. Catherine Hill Bay has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.










