
Surf Forecasts:
Emerald Beach surf forecast from 11 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 15 Sep, 10PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 6s period, NNE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 13 Sep, 10PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 11s period, SE swell with 314 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 15 Sep, 10PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 6s period with NNE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Emerald Beach this week:
The surf forecast for Emerald Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 15) at 10PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.6m and 6s period with a secondary swell of 1.4m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Emerald Beach in the next 16 days are 1.1m 11s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 13) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 4.5m 10s period and expected on Wednesday (Sep 16) at 4PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 10PM (Tue 15th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 6s |
| Best Surf | 10PM (Tue 15th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 6s |
| Most Powerful | 10PM (Sun 13th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Emerald Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you—this stretch is going to test your patience. We’ve got a long, bleak run of tiny, wind-blown slop ahead, and it’s not until the back half of the outlook that things show any real pulse. Hang tight.
The first bit is a dead loss. From Friday the 11th all the way through to the morning of Wednesday the 18th, we’re looking at ankle-biters. Waves are hanging around the 0.6 ft to 0.7 ft mark, and while a few of those mornings have a clean offshore feel, there’s just no energy to push anything rideable. The combined energy readings are pathetic—often in the teens or single digits, with the strongest being a weak 45 on the 16th. It’s a flat spell, and it’s going to feel like forever.
There’s a slight bump on the morning of Wednesday the 18th, with 4 ft of short-period SE windswell, but the onshore NE wind that afternoon kills it, and the morning window is just ordinary. Not worth getting wet for.
Now, here’s where it starts to get interesting. Saturday the 19th morning is our first real standout. Emerald Beach (Big Island) is the spot. We’ve got a clean 3 ft of ESE swell with a solid 11-second period, and the wind is dead glassy. That’s a beautiful combo—clean, lined-up, and that long-period energy will give it some proper push. The combined energy is a solid 237, which is the first time we’ve seen anything with real guts. It’s an exposed point, so it’ll take that ESE swell well, and the crowd factor is likely to be an issue because it’s such a clean window on a Saturday. Get out there early. It’s not huge, but it’s the best that week has to offer.
After that, we slide back into mediocrity for a few days. The winds turn onshore and messy, and the swell drops back to weak and short-period. Sunday the 20th through Thursday the 24th is mostly a write-off—small, bumpy, and not worth the paddle.
Then we finally get the real juice. The end of the outlook, from Friday the 25th of September onwards, is where it gets properly interesting. That morning, we’ve got 6 ft of E swell with a 7-second period, and clean light cross-off winds. The energy jumps to 286—that’s a proper kick. It’s not groundswell, but there’s enough size and push to get you moving. Saturday the 26th looks even bigger, with 7 ft of ENE swell and energy over 550. That’s a strong pulse, but it’s also getting into the territory where it’s too much for the beginners, and the cross-on winds will chop it up a bit. For the experienced crew, that Saturday could be a proper session, but it’ll be a bit wild. It’s a promising longer-range signal, but like anything that far out, don’t book the day off work just yet.
One note on the water temp—it’s sitting at 69° with the anomaly right about zero, so it’s pretty average for this time of year. No surprises there.
So, the call is simple: two real windows to aim for. The clean, glassy morning of Saturday the 19th, and then the bigger, pushier surf on the 25th and 26th. The rest is filler. Stay patient, keep an eye on the charts, and don’t be afraid to save your energy for the good ones.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 7mm), mostly falling on Fri night. Very mild (max 19°C on Sun morning, min 14°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Wed night. Warm (max 23°C on Tue morning, min 13°C on Wed night). Mainly strong winds. | |||||||||||||||||||
Fri 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | ||||||||||||||
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) | ENE 13 | ENE 14 | ENE 14 | ENE 14 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | E 10 | NE 4 | NNE 5 | NNE 5 | NNE 5 | NE 6 | ENE 14 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | NE 13 | NE 13 | N 16 |
Wave Graph | ||||||||||||||||||||
18 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 8 | 34 | 69 | 39 | 124 | 112 | 20 | 18 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 5 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross | on | on | cross-on | on | on | off | off | off | off | off | off | cross-off |
High Tide | 8:08PM1.63m | 8:36AM1.43m | 8:46PM1.53m | 9:14AM1.47m | 9:23PM1.40m | 9:51AM1.47m | 9:59PM1.26m | 10:30AM1.44m | 10:35PM1.12m | 11:11AM1.38m | 11:15PM0.99m | 11:58AM1.31m | 00:04AM0.88m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:30AM-0.02m | 2:36PM0.07m | 3:01AM0.01m | 3:20PM0.12m | 3:32AM0.06m | 4:03PM0.19m | 4:02AM0.14m | 4:47PM0.28m | 4:33AM0.22m | 5:36PM0.38m | 5:08AM0.31m | 6:35PM0.46m | ||||||||
— | — | 5:50 | — | — | 5:48 | — | — | 5:48 | — | — | 5:46 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:43 | — | — | |
5:36 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:39 | — | |
mm | — | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | — |
Temp °C | 18 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 16 | 23 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 15 |
Feels °C | 14 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 12 | 12 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 9 | SSE 10 | SSE 12 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | SSE 10 | NE 6 | NE 6 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | NE 13 | S 18 | S 18 |
898 | 567 | 383 | 411 | 539 | 298 | 250 | 291 | 312 | 180 | 119 | 56 | 32 | 112 | 6 | 18 | 17 | 7 | 27 | 26 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 13 | ENE 14 | S 19 | S 19 | S 17 | S 19 | SSW 18 | ENE 13 | E 10 | E 10 | E 12 | ENE 14 | NE 14 | E 14 | ENE 14 | — | — | S 19 | NE 13 | E 12 |
18 | 19 | 64 | 267 | 205 | 190 | 104 | 16 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 21 | 8 | 4 | 20 | — | — | 7 | 7 | 3 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 21 | E 9 | ENE 14 | ENE 14 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | ENE 13 | N 13 | E 12 | E 12 | E 16 | E 9 | E 9 | E 12 | ENE 14 | — | — | — | — | N 16 |
9 | 6 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 19 | — | — | — | — | 5 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NNW 3 | N 3 | NE 4 | NNE 5 | NNE 5 | NNE 5 | SSW 3 | S 8 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 9 | SSE 10 | SSE 9 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 4 | 34 | 69 | 39 | 124 | 12 | 1756 | 3482 | 2906 | 1820 | 1411 | 979 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 12 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 39 | 85 | 2 | 39 | 413 | 2 | 39 | 1611 | 120 | 186 | 1161 | 98 | 21 | 98 | 2 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Coast - New South Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Emerald Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Emerald Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Emerald Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Emerald 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 (Emerald 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 Emerald 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.
Are you planning a holiday in North Coast - New South Wales? If you are looking for accommodation near Emerald Beach, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in North Coast - New South Wales, consider staying in Coffs Harbour which is 21 km (13 miles) away. Alternatively, find information about places to stay and car hire in South Grafton which is 53 km (33 miles) away










