Surf Forecasts:
Chinamans surf forecast from 24 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 31 Aug, 6AM (local time) - 8ft (2.4m), 17s period, SW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 30 Aug, 9PM (local time) - 7.5ft (2.3m), 19s period, SW swell with 3,720 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 26 Aug, 6AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 13s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Chinamans this week:
The surf forecast for Chinamans over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 26) at 6AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.6m and 13s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 18s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Chinamans in the next 16 days are 2.3m 19s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 9PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 5s period and expected on Friday (Aug 28) at 3AM.
| Wave Type | Time (ACST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 6AM (Wed 26th Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 6AM (Mon 31st Aug) | 8ft (2.4m) 17s |
| Most Powerful | 9PM (Sun 30th Aug) | 7.5ft (2.3m) 19s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Chinamans over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let’s break it down. The only spot worth talking about is Chinamans, a reef that demands some skills. It’s a slow start, but there are a few gems.
Water temp is around 59°, just a hair above the norm for this time of year. Nothing wild.
Monday the 24th kicks off weak. Light rain, a cross-breeze, and about 4ft of SW swell. Combined energy is moderate at 634, but it’s marginal. Leave it.
Tuesday the 25th sees the swell jump to 8ft, but the wind is screaming from the SSW at 35 km/h, cross-on and lumpy. Energy is a chunky 4593, but it’s a mess. Not worth it.
Wednesday the 26th is where it gets good. A light offshore from the NNW at 10 km/h, and the swell drops to a clean 5ft. Combined energy is 858, and the conditions are very good. The afternoon stays clean with gentle offshore winds. A solid day.
Thursday the 27th has clean lines with a cross-offshore breeze, but the swell is only 4ft and the morning is marginal. The afternoon brings a long-period 19-second groundswell from the SW, energy at 1641, and the waves will be clean but a bit slow. Good for the experienced guys.
Friday the 28th is the standout. The morning has 7ft of SW swell with a moderate cross-offshore wind, but it’s a bit lumpy. The afternoon though? Perfect. 6ft of SW groundswell, light offshore from the north at 15 km/h, gentle and clean. Combined energy is 1787, and the conditions are excellent for experienced surfers. This is the one.
The weekend from Saturday the 29th into Sunday the 30th turns choppy. Cross-onshore winds and messy conditions, with the swell dropping to 3ft on Sunday morning. Forget it.
Then Monday the 31st has a glassy afternoon, no wind, and 7ft of SW swell. Combined energy is 2241, and it’s excellent for the confident surfer. The morning is a bit mixed, but that afternoon is pure.
Tuesday the 1st of September keeps the good run going. Gentle offshore in the morning, then glassy again in the afternoon, with 5ft of SW swell. Very clean.
The rest of the first week of September has some smaller days, but nothing beats Friday the 28th or Monday the 31st. By the 8th of September, the swell hits 10ft to 12ft, but the wind is messy and cross-shore – more for kite surfers.
So, Friday afternoon the 28th of August is the winner. Clean, offshore, solid SW swell. Monday the 31st afternoon is a close second. Get on it.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 20mm), heaviest during Mon morning. Very mild (max 13°C on Mon night, min 12°C on Mon morning). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the SSW on Mon night, light winds from the WNW by Tue night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 19°C on Thu night, min 14°C on Thu morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | |||||||||||||||
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 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 19 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 19 | SW 17 | SW 18 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 581 | 422 | 609 | 2513 | 2114 | 1139 | 827 | 591 | 209 | 557 | 945 | 2921 | 2316 | 1787 | 1307 | 965 | 618 | 357 | 450 | 1586 | 3499 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 12:56PM0.79m | 3:38AM0.37m | 1:22PM0.86m | 2:36AM0.40m | 1:44PM0.90m | 2:26AM0.46m | 2:05PM0.93m | 2:32AM0.53m | 2:25PM0.93m | 2:45AM0.61m | 2:45PM0.90m | 3:02AM0.70m | 3:05PM0.85m | 3:22AM0.78m | |||||||
Low Tide | 9:15PM0.15m | 5:30AM0.36m | 9:03PM0.14m | 6:37AM0.29m | 8:59PM0.13m | 7:15AM0.22m | 9:00PM0.11m | 7:48AM0.16m | 9:04PM0.10m | 8:19AM0.12m | 9:11PM0.08m | 8:51AM0.09m | 9:19PM0.07m | ||||||||
 | |  |  |  |  | | | | | |  |  | |  | | | | | | | |
 | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:47 | — | — | 6:45 | — | — |
 | — | 5:55 | — | — | 5:57 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:59 | — | — | 5:59 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — |
mm | 7 | 6 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 16 |
Feels °C | 8 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 13 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 14 | SW 14 | E 4 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 11 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 17 | SW 18 |
| kJ | 581 | 422 | 3 | 2080 | 2114 | 1139 | 827 | 591 | 177 | 557 | 696 | 2921 | 2316 | 1787 | 1307 | 965 | 618 | 357 | 272 | 1586 | 3499 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 20 | SW 18 | N 4 | — | — | SW 13 | SSW 18 | SW 16 | SW 15 | SW 21 | SW 19 | — | W 7 | — | — | — | SW 23 | SW 21 | SW 19 | SSW 19 | — |
| kJ | 38 | 121 | 3 | — | — | 7 | 31 | 129 | 209 | 285 | 945 | — | 8 | — | — | — | 21 | 222 | 450 | 465 | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 20 | NNW 5 | E 4 | — | — | — | — | — | SW 24 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 20 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 15 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 4 | NNE 5 | SW 13 | SW 16 | SW 14 | — | — | — | NNE 3 | N 4 | N 5 | NNE 4 | N 5 | NNW 4 | N 4 | ESE 3 | ESE 3 | — | — | SE 3 | SE 4 |
| kJ | 19 | 37 | 609 | 2513 | 1863 | — | — | — | 2 | 29 | 34 | 27 | 35 | 20 | 7 | 1 | 2 | — | — | 2 | 7 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 78 | 3 | 32 | 609 | 46 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 81 | 79 | 3 | 81 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Yorke Peninsula | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Chinamans 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 Chinamans Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Chinamans provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Chinamans can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Chinamans 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 (Chinamans) 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 Chinamans 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 Yorke Peninsula? If you are looking for accommodation near Chinamans, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Yorke Peninsula, consider staying in Kingscote which is 80 km (50 miles) away.
Nearest