Surf Forecasts:
Lakes Beach surf forecast from 18 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 19 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 10s period, ESE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 19 Aug, 4PM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 10s period, E swell with 267 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 19 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 11s period with ESE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Lakes Beach this week:
The surf forecast for Lakes Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.7m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.8m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Lakes Beach in the next 16 days are 1.2m 10s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 4PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.4m 3s period and expected on Tuesday (Aug 25) at 1AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 7AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 4PM (Wed 19th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Lakes Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the table for Lakes Beach. It's a bit of a mixed bag, so I'll tell you straight up.
Overall, the pattern is pretty flat and uninspiring for the first week and a half. We've got a long stretch of small, weak, and messy conditions. The wind is mostly onshore or cross-shore, and the swell is short period, offering nothing worth paddling out for. The water temp is sitting at 64°, which is about 1° cooler than normal for this time of year, so nothing unusual there.
The first real hint of anything interesting doesn't pop up until the morning of Friday the 29th of August. We'll see a bit of a pulse of south swell, around 3ft, with clean conditions thanks to a moderate offshore wind. The combined energy is moderate at 359, but it's still small. The afternoon pushes up to 5ft with a 12-second period and strong energy (696), but it's cross-offshore and a bit more marginal.
Now, the standout is the morning of Sunday, the 30th of August. This is the one to circle on the calendar. A massive 8ft south swell with a very long 18-second period is forecast, and the energy is pumping at a massive 6612. The wind is light and offshore from the SSW, keeping it clean. But here's the thing – that's a lot of juice for a beach break. A long period groundswell like this can be a bit too straight and powerful for the banks here. This is strictly for experienced surfers only. Beginners, stay on the sand. It might even be more interesting for the kite crew than paddle surfers.
The following Monday morning, the 31st of August, the swell drops to a more manageable 6ft with a 12-second period, and it's glassy. That's excellent surf for experienced surfers, with plenty of energy (1108) and clean conditions. After that, we're back to fading small swell and onshore winds into the first days of September.
So, the call is this: There's a huge gap of nothing until the 29th. The best bet for the experienced crew is the big, clean swell on the 30th of August, but with the caveat that it's a beast. For a more manageable but still punchy session, the glassy morning of the 31st of August is your best pick.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Warm (max 21°C on Fri morning, min 13°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 22°C on Mon morning, min 14°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Tue 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | ||||||||||||||
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) | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 10 | E 10 | SE 9 | E 6 | E 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | NE 9 | S 9 | S 12 | S 10 | S 11 | ENE 9 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 128 | 140 | 94 | 267 | 95 | 66 | 81 | 85 | 45 | 25 | 14 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 25 | 95 | 41 | 66 | 79 | 67 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross | glassy | on | on | cross-on | cross | cross | off |
High Tide | 00:11AM1.08m | 12:52PM1.32m | 1:05AM0.96m | 1:49PM1.28m | 2:17AM0.88m | 2:54PM1.27m | 3:41AM0.86m | 4:01PM1.29m | 4:54AM0.89m | 4:58PM1.35m | 5:47AM0.94m | 5:46PM1.42m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 6:25PM0.44m | 6:11AM0.39m | 7:30PM0.50m | 6:53AM0.47m | 8:46PM0.53m | 7:49AM0.53m | 10:05PM0.51m | 8:59AM0.56m | 11:10PM0.46m | 10:09AM0.54m | 11:58PM0.39m | 11:07AM0.50m | 00:37AM0.32m | |||||||
 |  |  | |  | |  |  | | |  | | | | | | | | |  | |
 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — |
 | 5:25 | — | — | 5:27 | — | — | 5:27 | — | — | 5:28 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — |
mm | — | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 |
Temp °C | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 19 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 22 | 24 | 19 |
Feels °C | 13 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 19 | 20 | 18 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | ESE 8 | ESE 7 | S 8 | SE 9 | E 6 | E 10 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | S 5 | S 9 | S 8 | S 10 | S 11 | ENE 9 |
| kJ | 56 | 140 | 94 | 10 | 95 | 66 | 2 | 85 | 45 | 25 | 14 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 13 | 95 | 31 | 66 | 79 | 67 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 14 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | S 15 | E 12 | E 11 | — | S 13 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 8 | S 6 | S 5 | S 8 | NE 9 | NE 9 | S 12 | ENE 4 | ENE 7 | S 10 |
| kJ | 71 | 113 | 90 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | 3 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 12 | 20 | 19 | 41 | 6 | 31 | 46 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | S 10 | S 9 | S 15 | — | E 11 | S 14 | S 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | S 4 | S 9 | S 16 | NE 8 | ENE 8 | NE 9 | S 16 |
| kJ | 7 | 48 | 26 | 4 | — | 9 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 25 | 45 | 18 | 23 | 3 | 19 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 7 | — | — | E 10 | NE 5 | NE 5 | E 6 | — | NNW 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ENE 4 | NNW 2 | NNW 2 | W 3 |
| kJ | 128 | — | — | 267 | 53 | 32 | 81 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 19 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 182 | 21 | 0 | 94 | 38 | 4 | 52 | 0 | 5 | 47 | 206 | 216 | 352 | 112 | 59 | 116 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Newcastle | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 Lakes Beach 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 Lakes Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Lakes Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Lakes Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Lakes Beach 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 (Lakes Beach) 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 Lakes Beach 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.
Lakes Beach is 11 km (7 miles) from the city of Catherine Hill Bay. If you plan a holiday in Newcastle, look for hotels and other accommodation in Catherine Hill Bay. Catherine Hill Bay has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest