Haardebaai Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. We’ve got a tricky 16-day window ahead for Haardebaai, and I’ll be straight with you – it’s a long wait for anything decent, but there is a glimmer of hope at the end.

The whole period starts off with a lot of wind and messy conditions. The first real recommendation isn’t until nearly the second week, with a whole lot of onshore slop in between. The water here is sitting at about 57°F, which is a good three and a half degrees colder than usual – that’s a notable chill, so a thick wetsuit is a must if you’re suiting up at that break.

So, the best bet on offer? Honestly, it’s the morning of Saturday, September 19th. That’s the standout. We’ve got a clean 2ft of SW groundswell (12 seconds) with a slight cross-offshore breeze. The wave energy is moderate (850), and it’s going to be a clean, lined-up wave at this sheltered reef. The only catch is, this spot does get surfed, and with conditions this clean on a Saturday, you can expect crowds to be likely. Still, it’s your best chance at a proper session.

Leading up to that, there’s a few marginal moments. Monday afternoon the 14th brings a short-period NW windswell at 6ft with a fresh offshore wind – it’ll be clean, but the period is only 6 seconds, so it’s going to be a bit of a bumpy, weak ride.

Tuesday the 15th has a very long period (18-21 seconds) SW groundswell. The size is manageable (4ft-6ft), and the wind is strong offshore, making for clean faces. But the period is so long that these waves are going to be very hard to paddle into at a reef, and the energy is actually high (up to 3233), so it’s a powerful but tricky one. Maybe one for the experts who can manage the extra-strong offshore wind and the slow sets.

After that, it gets messy again until that Saturday the 19th. There’s a distant chance on Tuesday the 22nd with a 7ft SW swell and offshore wind, but the quality is still considered marginal.

To be honest, this is a bleak run for a while. The onshore winds just won’t let up. If you’re not keen on waiting until the 19th, you might be better off checking if conditions are better elsewhere. The setup with all this onshore wind and solid swell does look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for most of the fortnight.

Things fall away again after the 19th with more onshore wind and bigger, stormy swell. It’s a long dry spell, but that one Saturday morning is the real target. Keep your fingers crossed the forecast holds.

Rusty.

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