
Surf Forecasts:
Friendly Beaches surf forecast from 3 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 6 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 10s period, ESE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 6 Aug, 1AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 11s period, ESE swell with 452 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 4 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 7s period with NNE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Friendly Beaches this week:
The surf forecast for Friendly Beaches over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 04) at 7AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.6m and 7s period with a secondary swell of 0.3m and 11s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Friendly Beaches in the next 16 days are 1.4m 11s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 06) at 1AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.2m 6s period and expected on Thursday (Aug 06) at 4AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 7AM (Tue 4th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 7s |
| Best Surf | 7AM (Thu 6th Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 1AM (Thu 6th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Friendly Beaches over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you: the next couple of weeks are pretty quiet on the surfing front around Friendly Beaches. We’ve got a few pulses of energy, but nothing that’s going to get your heart racing too hard until we get a bit further out. The water temp is pretty much where you’d expect it to be for this time of year.
The window kicks off on Tuesday the 4th, and honestly, it’s flat as a tack. We’re looking at a weak 2ft of swell from the NNE with a short 6-second period. There’s barely any energy in the water (61), and those clean conditions are just teasing us because there’s nothing to surf. Wednesday the 5th is a bit more of the same, a touch more push but still tiny and weak.
Thursday the 6th is where the first real sign of life shows up. A light offshore breeze early bumps the swell to 5ft from the ESE with a period of 9 seconds. The energy jumps to a moderate 328, and it’s clean. It’s not big, but it’s surfable and the conditions are tidy. That’s probably your best bet for the early part of the week.
Friday the 7th and Saturday the 8th are a letdown again – weak, short-period slop with poor winds on the Friday afternoon. Then Sunday the 9th gets messy: the swell jumps to 7-7ft from the NNE, but it’s a onshore cross-shore mess with moderate breeze, and the energy is there (463) but the quality is zero. This is definitely a paddle-off, maybe more of a kitesurf day if you’re into that.
Monday the 10th has a clean morning with a moderate offshore, but the 5ft NNE swell is a bit jumbled. It’s okay, but not a standout.
Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Tuesday the 11th of August – mark it down. The swell pumps up to a solid 10ft from the N, with a strong energy reading of 1171. The wind is light and cross-off, so it looks clean, but this is a lot of water. 10ft is only for experts. This break is exposed and can handle it, but it’s going to be big, powerful, and not for the faint of heart. The guidance even says it’s too big for this spot, so be careful. That’s a standout for the crew who know what they’re doing.
After that, things back off quickly. Wednesday the 12th and Thursday the 13th are back to small, though Thursday the 13th has a long-period 17-second groundswell from the S at just 2ft, which will be clean and glassy but tiny. Then Thursday afternoon the 13th throws another 10ft bomb from the S – again, a big, clean wall, but again, that’s expert-only territory.
The second week (from the 15th onward) looks like a slow, steady run of moderate, mid-period swells from the E, mostly in the 5ft to 8ft range. The energy picks up into the 600s and even 1300s on the 15th, but the winds are mostly cross or cross-off and the periods are around 9-11 seconds. It’s not going to be epic, but there might be some rideable, if slightly lumpy, waves on the 15th and 16th. The 17th has a stronger cross-off breeze, which might make it a bit bumpy.
So, the takeaway? If you’re a competent surfer, the two big days are Tuesday the 11th and Thursday the 13th in the morning and afternoon. They are big, raw, and powerful – think 10ft of clean swell. For everyone else, Thursday the 6th is your clean, manageable day. The rest is a waiting game.
Rusty out.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 4mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Very mild (max 14°C on Thu morning, min 8°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 14°C on Sat afternoon, min 6°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 4 | Wednesday 5 | Thursday 6 | Friday 7 | Saturday 8 | Sunday 9 | Monday 10 | |||||||||||||||
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 11 | SSE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 9 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 10 | NNE 5 | NNE 6 | NNE 7 | NE 9 | NE 9 | N 6 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
24 | 26 | 118 | 227 | 255 | 452 | 442 | 249 | 136 | 101 | 140 | 109 | 69 | 45 | 26 | 66 | 154 | 237 | 371 | 294 | 274 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | glassy | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | off | cross-off | cross-on | glassy | glassy | cross-on | cross | cross-off | cross | glassy | cross-off | on | off |
High Tide | 12:16PM1.08m | 00:15AM0.95m | 12:58PM1.14m | 1:27AM0.89m | 1:44PM1.20m | 2:46AM0.85m | 2:36PM1.25m | 4:05AM0.84m | 3:32PM1.31m | 5:18AM0.85m | 4:30PM1.36m | 6:22AM0.87m | 5:28PM1.40m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 6:28PM0.45m | 6:21AM0.36m | 7:35PM0.38m | 7:07AM0.43m | 8:42PM0.29m | 7:59AM0.49m | 9:49PM0.20m | 8:57AM0.53m | 10:53PM0.12m | 9:59AM0.55m | 11:53PM0.04m | 11:00AM0.55m | 00:49AM-0.00m | ||||||||
7:13 | — | — | 7:11 | — | — | 7:11 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:07 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | |
— | 5:12 | — | — | 5:13 | — | — | 5:14 | — | — | 5:15 | — | — | 5:15 | — | — | 5:16 | — | — | 5:17 | — | |
mm | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 13 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 13 | 14 | 9 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 14 | 8 |
Feels °C | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 6 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 6 | SSE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 9 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | S 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 7 | ESE 9 | SE 8 | NNE 7 | NE 9 | NE 9 | ENE 10 |
24 | 26 | 118 | 227 | 255 | 452 | 442 | 249 | 103 | 101 | 140 | 109 | 69 | 45 | 26 | 17 | 17 | 237 | 371 | 294 | 141 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | NNE 6 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | S 8 | ENE 13 | NE 12 | ESE 8 | S 16 | S 5 | ENE 10 | ENE 8 | S 16 | ENE 8 | SE 7 | S 14 | ESE 8 | SW 4 | S 17 | S 16 |
20 | 15 | 31 | 27 | 41 | 23 | 17 | 6 | 136 | 21 | 13 | 31 | 13 | 45 | 14 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 52 | 44 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 13 | S 9 | NE 6 | NNE 6 | NNE 6 | ENE 13 | S 16 | S 15 | NE 12 | NE 12 | S 15 | S 18 | S 16 | ENE 8 | SE 10 | ENE 8 | SE 13 | S 16 | S 18 | SSW 5 | SSW 6 |
17 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 17 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 18 | 25 | 21 | 6 | 26 | 13 | 7 | 20 | 58 | 3 | 4 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 3 | — | — | — | S 9 | SSW 5 | S 6 | S 7 | — | S 6 | — | — | N 4 | N 4 | N 4 | NNE 5 | NNE 6 | — | W 4 | — | N 6 |
3 | — | — | — | 130 | 28 | 141 | 205 | — | 25 | — | — | 1 | 9 | 40 | 66 | 154 | — | 9 | — | 274 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 110 | 110 | 93 | 16 | 16 | 40 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 69 | 34 | 34 | 110 | 110 | 110 | 110 | 114 | 114 | 34 |
Best forecast wave conditions in East Coast of Tasmania | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Friendly Beaches Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Friendly Beaches provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Friendly Beaches can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Friendly Beaches 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 (Friendly Beaches) 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 Friendly Beaches 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.
Friendly Beaches is 114 km (71 miles) from Launceston. If you plan a holiday in East Coast of Tasmania, look for hotels and other accommodation in Launceston. Launceston has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.











