Surf Forecasts:
Kawaihae Breakwater surf forecast from 20 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 22 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 0.5ft (0.2m), 26s period, SSW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 23 Jul, 8PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 19s period, SSW swell with 146 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 22 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 0.5ft (0.2m), 26s period with SSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Kawaihae Breakwater this week:
The surf forecast for Kawaihae Breakwater over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Jul 22) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.2m and 26s period with a secondary swell of 0.2m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Kawaihae Breakwater in the next 16 days are 0.4m 19s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 23) at 8PM. 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 8s period and expected on Sunday (Jul 26) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (HST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Wed 22nd Jul) | 0.5ft (0.2m) 26s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Wed 22nd Jul) | 0.5ft (0.2m) 26s |
| Most Powerful | 8PM (Thu 23rd Jul) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 19s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Kawaihae Breakwater over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s been brewing for the Big Island stretch.
Honestly, it’s a pretty grim run for the next week and a half. We’re looking at a solid ten days of flat to tiny conditions, so don’t bother rushing to the water. The first real day you could even call it ‘surfable’ is mid-week, but it’s still pretty ordinary until the end of the month.
Things start to kind of wake up around Wednesday, July 31st. Kawaihae Breakwater (Big Island) will have a little 1ft swell rolling in from the SW, with a period of 16 seconds. That’s a long-period groundswell, which is good for a reef like this, keeping the shape lined up. The combined energy is still weak (66), but the wind is light offshore from the NNE, so the surface will be clean. It’s still just small, though.
The pick of the bunch, and it’s not a huge call, is Saturday, August 1st. The morning sees a 1ft SW swell, period of 15 seconds, and the energy bumps up just a little (81). The wind is a gentle offshore from the NNE, so it’ll be clean again. The afternoon on that same day sees the energy actually go into the moderate range (112) with a 1ft W swell, period of 14 seconds. The wind stays light offshore from the NE. It’s not going to blow your mind, but it’s the best window we’ve got. The water temp is sitting at 80°, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.
Crowds are possible at Kawaihae Breakwater, so you might see a few others out for these tiny scraps. For the rest of the run, it’s pretty much a write-off. If you’re a kite surfer, the persistent offshore winds and flat conditions might be your thing, but for paddle surfing, it’s a waiting game.
Stay patient, the forecasts can always flip.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Sun afternoon, min 24°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Wed morning, min 24°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 19 | Monday 20 | Tuesday 21 | Wednesday 22 | Thursday 23 | Friday 24 | Saturday 25 | |||||||||||||||
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) | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | SSW 13 | SSW 11 | SSW 16 | SSW 26 | SSW 24 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 17 | SSW 13 | SSW 21 | SSW 17 | SSW 20 | SSW 11 | SSW 9 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 50 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 13 | 17 | 12 | 26 | 65 | 55 | 30 | 29 | 25 | 25 | 30 | 17 | 45 | 27 | 37 | 11 | 7 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | glassy | off | glassy | off | cross-off | glassy | off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off |
High Tide | 8:35AM0.44m | 7:42PM0.51m | 9:42AM0.48m | 8:14PM0.41m | 10:49AM0.54m | 8:47PM0.32m | 11:51AM0.59m | 9:44PM0.25m | 12:45PM0.63m | 11:28PM0.20m | 1:32PM0.66m | 00:54AM0.19m | 2:14PM0.70m | 1:52AM0.20m | |||||||
Low Tide | 1:51PM0.22m | 2:39AM0.02m | 3:21PM0.28m | 3:12AM0.03m | 5:30PM0.29m | 3:48AM0.04m | 7:48PM0.24m | 4:32AM0.04m | 8:54PM0.19m | 5:23AM0.04m | 9:26PM0.14m | 6:18AM0.02m | 9:52PM0.11m | ||||||||
 | |  | |  | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 5:52 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — |
 | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:04 | — | — | 7:04 | — | — | 7:04 | — | — | 7:02 | — | — | 7:02 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 28 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 25 |
Feels °C | 27 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 26 | 28 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 26 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 6 | NE 6 | NNE 8 | NNE 7 | NE 7 | NNE 7 | NE 7 | NE 6 | NE 7 | NNE 5 | SSW 23 | NNE 5 | NE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | SSW 18 | NE 7 | SSW 20 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | SSW 18 |
| kJ | 34 | 25 | 51 | 48 | 26 | 32 | 54 | 51 | 49 | 16 | 106 | 17 | 39 | 51 | 32 | 61 | 65 | 76 | 103 | 123 | 102 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | NE 7 | SSW 18 | SSW 22 | SSW 20 | SSW 20 | SSW 18 | SSW 13 | SSW 17 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 18 | SSW 9 |
| kJ | 50 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 30 | 91 | 78 | 75 | 66 | 17 | 59 | 27 | 51 | 102 | 7 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 7 | NNE 8 | SSW 12 | ENE 7 | SSW 10 | SSW 13 | W 11 | SSW 16 | SSW 26 | SSW 24 | E 12 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 17 | E 10 | SSW 21 | SSW 16 | SSW 20 | SSW 11 | E 16 |
| kJ | 5 | 12 | 13 | 5 | 11 | 17 | 9 | 26 | 65 | 55 | 12 | 29 | 25 | 25 | 30 | 2 | 45 | 25 | 37 | 11 | 20 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | NNE 5 | — | — | NNE 5 | — | — | — | — | — | NE 6 | — | — | — | — | NE 7 | — | NNE 8 | — | — | NNE 8 |
| kJ | — | 18 | — | — | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | 40 | — | — | — | — | 65 | — | 101 | — | — | 157 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 88 | 88 | 46 | 86 | 49 | 46 | 88 | 49 | 0 | 88 | 54 | 46 | 91 | 91 | 46 | 46 | 88 | 35 | 46 | 88 | 35 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Big Island | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Kawaihae Breakwater 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 Kawaihae Breakwater Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Kawaihae Breakwater provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Kawaihae Breakwater can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Kawaihae Breakwater 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 (Kawaihae Breakwater) 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 Kawaihae Breakwater 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.
Kawaihae Breakwater is 87 km (54 miles) from Hilo. If you plan a vacation in Big Island, look for hotels and other accommodation in Hilo. Hilo has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest