
Surf Forecasts:
Kawaihae Breakwater surf forecast from 6 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 8 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 13s period, WSW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 8 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 13s period, WSW swell with 875 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 6 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 11s period with SW 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 Sunday (Sep 06) at 11AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 11s period. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Kawaihae Breakwater in the next 16 days are 1.6m 13s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 08) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.9m 7s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 06) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (HST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11AM (Sun 6th Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Tue 8th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 13s |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Tue 8th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Kawaihae Breakwater over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, Rusty here. Let's get into the only game in town for the next couple of weeks: Kawaihae Breakwater. This is a reef setup on the Big Island, and it's a spot that's fairly consistent, so it's not going to stay flat forever. We've got a bit of a slow start, but there's a window of quality on the horizon.
Right off the bat, the water temp is sitting at a comfortable 82°F, which is pretty much dead average for this time of year, so no surprises there.
We are looking at a bit of a wait to start. The first couple of days are pretty weak. Sunday and Monday morning are just small and ordinary. The combined swell energy is low, around 182, and it's a 3-foot SW swell. It's rideable, but nothing to get excited about.
Then, things start to fire up. The standout window kicks off Monday afternoon. The swell bumps up to 5 feet from the SW, with a nice long 14-second period giving it some real groundswell grunt. The energy jumps right up to 765, and the wind goes dead calm, glassy conditions. That's the session to point for. This long period stuff loves a reef setup like Kawaihae, and with that offshore wind direction in the sweet spot, it should be lining up nicely. It's not too big for the average surfer, but that period means you'll want to be on your game as the sets roll through.
Tuesday afternoon is another strong look. It's a touch bigger, hitting 5 feet from the W, with energy at 676, and again, glassy conditions. This is the other pick of the first week.
After that, the swell drops off a cliff. From Wednesday the 9th onward, it gets small, weak, and inconsistent. There are a few days with clean offshore winds in the morning, but the swell is just too small to do much with—think ankle-to-knee-high dribble. The energy values drop into the double digits, and you're looking at a solid run of poor conditions through to mid-September.
There is a very minor blip around the 15th to the 17th where the swell energy creeps back up to the low 100s, but the wave height is still only 1 feet. It's a very marginal improvement at best. The rest of the forecast is tiny and essentially flat for any real surfing, with persistent offshore winds just blowing over nothing.
So, to sum it up: don't bother with the opening days. Your absolute best bet is Monday afternoon the 7th, and if you miss that, Tuesday afternoon the 8th is the backup. After that, the board stays in the bag for a long stretch.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Sun morning. Warm (max 29°C on Tue morning, min 26°C on Sun morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Wed morning, min 24°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | Friday 11 | Saturday 12 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SW 11 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 11 | SW 11 | WSW 13 | WSW 11 | WSW 10 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | WNW 7 | SSW 7 | SW 16 | SW 18 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 9 | SW 15 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 14 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
182 | 244 | 437 | 205 | 202 | 875 | 550 | 399 | 135 | 51 | 10 | 5 | 42 | 50 | 42 | 66 | 22 | 57 | 60 | 29 | 29 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | glassy | glassy | cross-off | glassy | glassy | glassy | cross-on | glassy | glassy | glassy | off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | off | cross-off | off | off | off |
High Tide | 12:59PM0.72m | 1:17AM0.24m | 1:49PM0.75m | 2:08AM0.31m | 2:32PM0.75m | 2:51AM0.39m | 3:10PM0.73m | 3:32AM0.46m | 3:45PM0.69m | 4:11AM0.53m | 4:16PM0.63m | 4:50AM0.58m | 4:46PM0.55m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 8:26PM0.06m | 6:29AM0.01m | 8:55PM0.03m | 7:32AM-0.01m | 9:22PM0.01m | 8:26AM-0.02m | 9:48PM-0.01m | 9:15AM-0.00m | 10:13PM-0.02m | 10:03AM0.02m | 10:37PM-0.02m | 10:50AM0.06m | 11:00PM-0.01m | ||||||||
6:07 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | |
— | 6:34 | — | — | 6:32 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:29 | — | — | 6:28 | — | |
mm | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 25 |
Feels °C | 32 | 31 | 31 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 32 | 31 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 31 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 27 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 11 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 11 | SW 11 | WSW 13 | WSW 11 | WSW 10 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | NE 6 | NE 7 | SW 16 | SW 18 | NE 7 | NNE 8 | NE 5 | NNE 7 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 8 |
182 | 244 | 437 | 205 | 202 | 875 | 550 | 399 | 135 | 51 | 34 | 60 | 42 | 50 | 53 | 43 | 35 | 41 | 52 | 25 | 56 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 6 | NE 7 | NE 7 | NE 6 | NE 7 | NE 12 | NE 11 | NE 10 | NE 8 | NNE 8 | NNE 7 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SW 10 | NNE 8 | SW 15 | SW 15 | SW 14 | SW 14 |
39 | 73 | 47 | 68 | 47 | 158 | 168 | 117 | 58 | 42 | 20 | 34 | 16 | 18 | 37 | 24 | 22 | 57 | 60 | 29 | 29 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 12 | ENE 12 | ENE 12 | ENE 12 | ENE 12 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SW 8 | SW 7 | WNW 7 | SSW 7 | WNW 10 | SSW 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 9 | ENE 11 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | W 11 |
73 | 47 | 81 | 79 | 109 | 81 | 84 | 81 | 46 | 14 | 10 | 5 | 10 | 16 | 42 | 66 | 22 | 23 | 20 | 9 | 9 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NE 7 | NNE 5 | — | — | — | — | — | NNE 4 | — |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 71 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | 13 | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 0 | 46 | 35 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Big Island | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
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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.










