Surf Forecasts:
Kelso (Happy Wanderers) surf forecast from 28 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 4 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 11s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 4 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 11s period, S swell with 3,074 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 30 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 6s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Kelso (Happy Wanderers) this week:
The surf forecast for Kelso (Happy Wanderers) over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.3m and 6s 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 Kelso (Happy Wanderers) in the next 16 days are 3.5m 11s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 04) at 8AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 3.5m 8s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8PM (Sun 30th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.3m) 6s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 11ft (3.5m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 11ft (3.5m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Kelso (Happy Wanderers) over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the menu for Kelso.
Well, I gotta be straight with you, the next couple of weeks are lookin' pretty grim for a proper paddle. The pattern is dominated by strong, unfavourable winds and lumpy conditions that just won't give us a break. For the first several days, it's a write-off – strong cross-onshore winds and messy, poor quality surf make it near impossible to find a decent wave. There's a real dry spell here.
Now, the first glimmer of hope pops up on Monday the 31st of August. It's not much, but we see a shift. The afternoon brings a 4ft easterly swell with a moderate cross-off breeze. It's labelled as marginal, and the combined wave energy is moderate at 330, but it'll be clean. It's really just a sign of life after a flat stretch.
The standout window in this whole forecast is shaping up around Thursday the 3rd of September. Here's where things start to look interesting. The Thursday afternoon session is where it's at. We've got a 3ft SSW groundswell with a long period of 14 seconds, pumping combined energy of 470. But the real kicker is the wind – a light breeze from the south creating cross-off conditions. That means clean, lined-up waves. This is your best bet for a quality surf, no question.
The very next morning, Friday the 4th of September, we get a massive pulse of swell, but it's a bit of a beast. A 13ft SSE swell with 11-second period hits, and the energy reading goes through the roof at 4495. For all but the experts, that's too much. Cross-onshore wind from the east will keep it lumpy and tough to paddle into. Only the most experienced crew with big-wave gear should even think about it. After that, the following week is back to the usual pattern of poor conditions and onshore winds.
The call: If you want a wave, your absolute best chance is Thursday afternoon, 3rd of September at Kelso (Happy Wanderers). Get on that clean, long-period groundswell. The crowd situation is listed as *sometimes* busy, so you might have company, but it'll be well worth it.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 24°C on Sat afternoon, min 16°C on Fri morning). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the NE on Fri afternoon, calm by Sun night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Mon night. Warm (max 21°C on Mon morning, min 17°C on Tue night). Mainly strong winds. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | |||||||||||||||
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 13 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | SSW 7 | SSW 6 | S 6 | SW 11 | E 10 | E 9 | SSE 6 | ENE 6 | SW 14 | ENE 7 | SSW 8 | SSW 18 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | S 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 529 | 353 | 233 | 239 | 184 | 98 | 311 | 147 | 95 | 33 | 267 | 207 | 65 | 207 | 48 | 0 | 744 | 943 | 800 | 378 | 60 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | on | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 4:10PM1.81m | 4:18AM1.76m | 4:36PM1.87m | 4:45AM1.78m | 5:04PM1.89m | 5:13AM1.75m | 5:32PM1.85m | 5:42AM1.68m | 6:02PM1.77m | 6:13AM1.58m | 6:35PM1.63m | 6:48AM1.43m | 7:15PM1.46m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 9:57AM0.03m | 10:15PM0.08m | 10:22AM-0.02m | 10:42PM0.04m | 10:49AM-0.04m | 11:11PM0.04m | 11:17AM-0.01m | 11:40PM0.09m | 11:46AM0.06m | 00:12AM0.18m | 12:18PM0.18m | 00:47AM0.31m | 12:55PM0.33m | 1:31AM0.48m | |||||||
 | |  | | | |  | |  |  | |  |  | | | | |  | |  |  | |
 | 6:16 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:15 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — |
 | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — | 5:40 | — | — | 5:40 | — | — | 5:42 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | 2 | 9 |
Temp °C | 21 | 23 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 19 |
Feels °C | 16 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 20 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 13 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 10 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | E 10 | E 9 | SSE 6 | SSW 7 | SW 14 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | S 8 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | ENE 6 |
| kJ | 529 | 353 | 233 | 239 | 184 | 1199 | 495 | 442 | 295 | 248 | 267 | 207 | 65 | 10 | 48 | 172 | 92 | 227 | 800 | 378 | 129 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 16 | S 16 | S 15 | SSW 11 | SW 15 | S 12 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | S 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 5 | SW 12 | SSW 11 | SW 14 | S 12 | E 8 | NE 7 | SSW 18 | E 10 | — | S 8 |
| kJ | 46 | 129 | 161 | 12 | 8 | 98 | 24 | 24 | 95 | 33 | 17 | 6 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 118 | 26 | 943 | 65 | — | 60 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | SW 15 | — | SW 10 | SSE 13 | SSE 14 | SSE 12 | SW 11 | SSW 9 | SE 10 | S 10 | S 9 | S 10 | — | SSW 13 | ENE 8 | — | — | SE 6 |
| kJ | — | — | — | 9 | — | 4 | 35 | 18 | 28 | 30 | 46 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | 69 | 68 | — | — | 29 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 8 | NE 8 | NE 8 | NE 8 | NE 8 | — | SSW 7 | SSW 6 | — | — | — | SE 6 | ENE 9 | ENE 6 | ENE 7 | SSW 5 | SSW 8 | — | NE 4 | E 5 | — |
| kJ | 724 | 1129 | 1087 | 994 | 1547 | — | 311 | 147 | — | — | — | 164 | 232 | 207 | 363 | 174 | 744 | — | 17 | 92 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 383 | 426 | 358 | 358 | 388 | 41 | 187 | 204 | 0 | 49 | 3 | 0 | 505 | 692 | 14 | 354 | 692 | 0 | 26 | 0 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Durban/KwaZulu-Natal South Coast | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Kelso (Happy Wanderers) 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 Kelso (Happy Wanderers) Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Kelso (Happy Wanderers) provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Kelso (Happy Wanderers) can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Kelso (Happy Wanderers) 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 (Kelso (Happy Wanderers)) 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 Kelso (Happy Wanderers) 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.
Kelso (Happy Wanderers) is 5 km (3 miles) from Scottburgh. If you plan a holiday in Durban/KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, look for hotels and other accommodation in Scottburgh. Scottburgh has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest