Surf Forecasts:
Nine Mile Reef surf forecast from 16 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 21 Jul, 8PM (local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 12s period, SW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 23 Jul, 11AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 14s period, SSW swell with 2,837 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 16 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 12s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Nine Mile Reef this week:
The surf forecast for Nine Mile Reef over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 16) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.4m and 12s period. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Nine Mile Reef in the next 16 days are 3.0m 14s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 23) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.2m 6s period and expected on Tuesday (Jul 21) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Thu 16th Jul) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 8PM (Tue 21st Jul) | 7ft (2.1m) 12s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Thu 23rd Jul) | 10ft (3.0m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Nine Mile Reef over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into it.
We’re lookin’ at a mixed bag on the reef for the next couple of weeks. The water is sitting at 58°, which is a bit colder than usual for this time of year – a whole degree off, so you’ll want a good hood or a thick wetsuit.
The first few days are pretty subdued. Thursday the 16th afternoon is a write-off with marginal conditions and a bit of a onshore breeze. The real action doesn’t start to tickle until Friday the 17th. That morning, the wind drops to glassy, and we’ve got a 4ft SW swell with a solid 11-second period – it’s clean, but the energy is only moderate (375). Not a standout, but a nice little morning session. The glass holds through the afternoon and into Saturday morning the 18th, though the swell drops to 3ft. Saturday afternoon picks up a bit with a 2ft swell but a longer 12-second period, and the cross-off wind keeps it tidy.
The first real highlight pops up on Sunday the 19th morning. A 4ft SW swell, 12-second period, and a clean offshore wind from the north at 9 mph. The energy is building (447) and it’ll be a good, fun morning. The afternoon gets a bit onshore and messy, so stick to the morning.
Things start to get interesting on Tuesday the 21st. That morning is a gem: 5ft SSW swell, a very long 14-second period, and a clean offshore breeze. The combined energy jumps to 844 – solid moderate energy. This is a proper groundswell, and the long period will make it punchy. For a reef break, this is a beauty. This is the best on offer in the first week.
Then it gets too rowdy for most of us. From Wednesday the 22nd right through to Saturday the 26th, the swell is pumping over 7ft, hitting 10ft on the 23rd. The energy is strong to very strong (1948 up to 3903). That’s expert-only territory. The wind is favorable, but it’s just too big for this spot. If you’re a charger, the morning of the 23rd with 10ft and a 14-second period is your window, but the rest of us are watching from the cliffs.
After that big pulse, it settles down. The morning of Tuesday the 28th is a real treat. 5ft SW swell, 15-second period, glassy calm, and the energy is still strong (1150). This is excellent for experienced surfers. The afternoon is glassy too. This is the standout in the second week.
The end of the month sees another spike on the 29th with 8ft SSW swell and an 18-second period – huge, long period, and 3285 energy. Again, experts only. The 30th morning drops back to a more manageable 6ft with a clean offshore, which is a good option for strong intermediate surfers. By the 31st, it’s fading back to 4ft with a strong offshore, but it’s pretty weak.
Stay safe out there, and don’t get caught inside on those big days.
- Rusty
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 18°C on Sat afternoon, min 13°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Very mild (max 17°C on Tue afternoon, min 11°C on Mon night). Winds increasing (calm on Sun night, fresh winds from the N by Tue night). | |||||||||||||||||||
Thu 16 | Friday 17 | Saturday 18 | Sunday 19 | Monday 20 | Tuesday 21 | Wednesday 22 | ||||||||||||||
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 13 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SSW 10 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SSW 10 | SSW 9 | SSW 9 | SSW 16 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SW 12 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 734 | 578 | 375 | 316 | 168 | 119 | 159 | 277 | 383 | 447 | 471 | 329 | 145 | 256 | 799 | 796 | 1878 | 1948 | 1429 | 1480 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | glassy | glassy | glassy | glassy | glassy | cross-off | off | off | cross-on | glassy | glassy | cross | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off |
High Tide | 4:55PM1.64m | 5:11AM1.49m | 5:37PM1.61m | 5:53AM1.40m | 6:18PM1.54m | 6:36AM1.29m | 7:00PM1.43m | 7:21AM1.18m | 7:44PM1.32m | 8:12AM1.08m | 8:35PM1.21m | 9:19AM1.01m | 9:42PM1.12m | |||||||
Low Tide | 11:11PM0.10m | 11:21AM0.07m | 11:55PM0.16m | 12:00PM0.16m | 00:39AM0.25m | 12:39PM0.27m | 1:24AM0.34m | 1:19PM0.39m | 2:13AM0.44m | 2:07PM0.51m | 3:13AM0.52m | 3:11PM0.61m | 4:33AM0.56m | |||||||
 |  | | | | | |  | | | |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |
 | — | — | 7:48 | — | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:46 | — | — | 7:46 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — |
 | 5:53 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:55 | — | — | 5:57 | — | — | 5:57 | — | — | 5:58 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | — |
Temp °C | 16 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 14 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 16 |
Feels °C | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 17 | 15 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 13 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 10 | SSW 10 | SW 9 | SW 9 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SSW 10 | SSW 9 | SSW 9 | SSW 16 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SW 12 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 |
| kJ | 734 | 578 | 375 | 316 | 168 | 119 | 99 | 277 | 383 | 447 | 471 | 329 | 145 | 256 | 799 | 796 | 1878 | 1948 | 1429 | 1480 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | S 15 | S 13 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 10 | S 12 | W 10 | S 9 | SSW 12 | SSE 12 | SE 12 | SE 12 | — | ESE 11 | ESE 12 |
| kJ | — | — | — | 4 | 79 | 118 | 144 | 133 | 56 | 33 | 112 | 17 | 93 | 94 | 14 | 6 | 6 | — | 12 | 15 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | E 11 | SW 16 | SSW 14 | SW 12 | W 11 | SSE 9 | SE 8 | SSE 10 | SE 12 | W 9 | S 8 | SW 11 | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | 2 | 10 | 76 | 159 | 191 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 40 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NW 2 | NNW 2 | — | — | — | — | — | NNW 3 | NW 6 | NW 5 | NW 5 | NW 5 | N 4 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | 330 | 143 | 98 | 42 | 6 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 300 | 300 | 18 | 12 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Cape Town | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 Nine Mile Reef 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 Nine Mile Reef Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Nine Mile Reef provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Nine Mile Reef can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Nine Mile Reef 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 (Nine Mile Reef) 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 Nine Mile Reef 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.
Nine Mile Reef is 19 km (12 miles) from the very large city of Bellville. If you plan a holiday in Cape Town, look for hotels and other accommodation in Bellville. Bellville has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as cheap car hire and transport links.
Nearest