Surf Forecasts:
Danger Reef surf forecast from 18 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 23 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 16s period, SW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 23 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 16s period, SW swell with 5,819 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 18 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 12s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Danger Reef this week:
The surf forecast for Danger Reef over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Jul 18) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.4m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.7m and 10s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Danger Reef in the next 16 days are 3.5m 16s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 23) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 5s period and expected on Wednesday (Jul 22) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Sat 18th Jul) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Thu 23rd Jul) | 11ft (3.5m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 11PM (Thu 23rd Jul) | 11ft (3.5m) 16s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Danger Reef over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Howdy, Rusty here. Let's talk about Danger Reef for the next couple of weeks. It's a reef break that's fairly consistent and exposed, but it does get crowded often. Water temp is about 59.4°F, which is normal for this time of year.
We start on Saturday afternoon, July 18, with a small 3-foot swell from the southwest, 12-second period, and a gentle offshore breeze from the northwest. Clean, but not much push – combined energy is 576 (moderate). A nice warm-up.
Sunday, July 19, looks better. Morning has 5.2ft SW with the same offshore wind, then the afternoon goes glassy with a light breeze from the WSW, 6.6ft SW, and 9-second period. Energy jumps to 731. That afternoon glass is a beauty – clean, fun waves for intermediates.
Monday, July 20, drops: 4.6ft SW in the morning, cross-off wind, then 3.6ft in the afternoon. Still clean, but nothing special. Crowds likely.
Now Tuesday, July 21 – this is where it gets real. Morning: 6.6ft SSW swell, 14-second period, cross-off from the north. Combined energy 1495 (strong). That's proper groundswell – excellent shape for the reef, but over 5ft so it's for intermediates and up. The afternoon goes glassy with 7.2ft SW, 14s, and energy 1792. Glassy, clean, powerful – a standout session for experienced surfers.
Wednesday, July 22, holds 5.9ft SW, 12s, but the wind picks up to a moderate breeze from the NNW, then fresh offshore in the afternoon. Still clean, energy 931-973. A decent option if you miss Tuesday.
Thursday, July 23, brings back good conditions. Morning: 5.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Sun morning. Very mild (max 17°C on Sat afternoon, min 12°C on Mon morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Wed night. Very mild (max 16°C on Thu afternoon, min 11°C on Wed morning). Winds increasing (calm on Tue night, fresh winds from the NNW by Wed afternoon). | |||||||||||||||||||
Sat 18 | Sunday 19 | Monday 20 | Tuesday 21 | Wednesday 22 | Thursday 23 | Friday 24 | ||||||||||||||
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 12 | SW 9 | SW 10 | SW 9 | SW 8 | SSW 16 | SSW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | WSW 11 | WSW 12 | SSW 18 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 260 | 580 | 683 | 679 | 742 | 294 | 154 | 310 | 1453 | 1762 | 1246 | 913 | 960 | 1107 | 874 | 1295 | 5534 | 3236 | 2596 | 2067 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | cross-off | off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross-off | off | off | off | glassy | cross-on | on |
High Tide | 6:19PM1.52m | 6:36AM1.28m | 7:00PM1.42m | 7:21AM1.17m | 7:44PM1.31m | 8:13AM1.07m | 8:35PM1.19m | 9:19AM1.00m | 9:42PM1.11m | 10:47AM0.97m | 11:04PM1.08m | 12:11PM1.01m | 00:19AM1.11m | |||||||
Low Tide | 00:39AM0.24m | 12:39PM0.27m | 1:24AM0.34m | 1:20PM0.39m | 2:13AM0.43m | 2:07PM0.50m | 3:13AM0.51m | 3:12PM0.60m | 4:33AM0.55m | 4:45PM0.64m | 5:56AM0.53m | 6:15PM0.61m | ||||||||
 |  |  | |  | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | | | | |
 | — | — | 7:48 | — | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:46 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — |
 | 5:55 | — | — | 5:57 | — | — | 5:57 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:59 | — | — | 5:59 | — | — | 6:00 | — |
mm | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 |
Feels °C | 15 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 15 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 9 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 9 | SW 10 | SW 9 | SW 8 | SSW 16 | SSW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | WSW 11 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 |
| kJ | 206 | 580 | 683 | 679 | 742 | 294 | 154 | 310 | 1453 | 1762 | 1246 | 913 | 960 | 1107 | 874 | 763 | 5534 | 3236 | 2596 | 2067 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 12 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 9 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SW 12 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 14 | SE 13 | SSW 18 | SE 12 | SE 12 | ESE 11 | ESE 11 |
| kJ | 260 | 108 | 77 | 30 | 17 | 101 | 110 | 178 | 42 | 30 | 18 | 18 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 1295 | 35 | 21 | 12 | 12 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | W 11 | W 11 | WSW 11 | SE 10 | W 10 | W 10 | SSW 7 | W 9 | W 9 | — | — | SE 15 | ESE 14 | S 22 | SE 12 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 110 | 62 | 57 | 22 | 14 | 45 | 45 | 61 | 24 | 14 | — | — | 8 | 18 | 9 | 6 | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 3 | NW 3 | NNW 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NNW 3 | NW 5 | NNE 4 | NNW 3 | — | — | — | — | SE 4 |
| kJ | 2 | 2 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 47 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 10 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 223 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 23 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Cape Town | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 Danger Reef 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 Danger Reef Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Danger Reef provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Danger Reef can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Danger Reef 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 (Danger Reef) 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 Danger Reef 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 Cape Town? If you are looking for accommodation near Danger Reef, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Cape Town, consider staying in Cape Town which is 20 km (12 miles) away. Other places in and around Cape Town where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Bellville which is 29 km (18 miles) away, Robben Island, Stellenbosch and Kayamnandi.
Nearest