Surf Forecasts:
North Beach surf forecast from 11 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 13 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 9s period, ENE swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Monday 14 Sep, 5PM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 9s period, ENE swell with 2,486 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 11 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 9s period with E swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for North Beach this week:
The surf forecast for North Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 11) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.0m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 5s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at North Beach in the next 16 days are 4.0m 9s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Sep 14) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.3m 5s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 17) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Fri 11th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 9s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Sun 13th Sep) | 4.5ft (1.3m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 5PM (Mon 14th Sep) | 13ft (4.0m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for North Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's take a look at what North Beach has got cookin' for us over the next couple of weeks.
The water is sitting at 68°, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year, so you might want an extra layer if you're paddling out.
The first bit of the run is a total write-off, I’m sorry to say. We’re looking at Friday and Saturday the 11th and 12th with nothing but poor surf and cross-shore winds messing things up. Not worth paddling out.
Things start to get a little more interesting from Sunday the 13th. The morning shows some potential with a clean 4 ft easterly swell and a light onshore breeze. The wave energy is moderate at 610, but the conditions are labeled marginal, so it’s not a sure thing. The afternoon goes downhill fast with a messy 2 ft swell and a chunky cross-onshore wind.
Monday the 14th is a beast, but not for surfing. We’ve got a massive 13 ft swell with near gale-force cross-onshore winds. The energy is a staggering 2543, but the conditions are blown out and dangerous. That’s for experts only, if anyone is silly enough. Honestly, with that much wind and swell at a beach break, it’s looking more like a kite surfer’s paradise.
Tuesday the 15th has a cleaner 7 ft swell in the morning with light winds, but it’s still a cross-onshore and the surf quality is marginal. The energy is still strong at 708. It’s not great, but it’s a step up.
The real standout, and I mean the only true highlight in this whole forecast, is Friday the 18th. We’ve got clean 3 ft surf from the east with light offshore winds from the west. The wave energy is a modest 281, but the wind is glassy and the conditions are labelled as good. For North Beach, that’s the best we’re gonna see for a while. Get out there for the morning session.
After that, we slide back into a messy pattern. Saturday the 19th has a cross-off breeze but the swell drops to 3 ft and the energy is weak. The following week shows a few pulses of bigger swell, like on Sunday the 20th we see a 4 ft swell from the south with a super long 20-second period. That energy is strong at 1502, but the wind is cross-onshore and choppy. A long period south swell at a beach break like North Beach will break straight and be hard to manage. Not ideal.
The rest of the second week is mostly blown out or marginal with strong cross-onshore winds and messy conditions. Keep an eye on Saturday the 26th – a 8 ft NE swell with a clean cross-off breeze, but the energy is strong at 1222 and the conditions are still only marginal.
Bottom line: wait for Friday the 18th. It’s the one morning that’s worth getting up early for. The rest is a gamble.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 22°C on Fri morning, min 19°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 12mm), heaviest on Wed night. Warm (max 24°C on Mon morning, min 17°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (near gales from the NE on Mon afternoon, calm by Tue morning). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | |||||||||||||||
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) | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | ENE 9 | E 9 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | S 7 | E 10 | E 10 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 194 | 217 | 160 | 125 | 99 | 211 | 199 | 237 | 395 | 1023 | 2486 | 982 | 680 | 641 | 618 | 586 | 575 | 484 | 333 | 234 | 225 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross | on | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 4:00PM2.12m | 4:13AM2.02m | 4:29PM2.13m | 4:41AM2.00m | 4:56PM2.09m | 5:08AM1.93m | 5:23PM2.00m | 5:34AM1.83m | 5:48PM1.88m | 5:58AM1.71m | 6:12PM1.73m | 6:23AM1.56m | 6:36PM1.57m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 9:48AM0.11m | 10:10PM0.14m | 10:17AM0.09m | 10:38PM0.14m | 10:45AM0.13m | 11:06PM0.19m | 11:12AM0.20m | 11:32PM0.29m | 11:37AM0.32m | 11:58PM0.41m | 12:00PM0.46m | 00:22AM0.55m | 12:24PM0.62m | 00:49AM0.70m | |||||||
 |  |  | | | | | | | | |  |  | |  | | |  |  |  | | |
 | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — |
 | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:46 | — | — | 5:47 | — | — | 5:47 | — | — | 5:49 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 9 | 4 | — | 2 |
Temp °C | 22 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 24 | 24 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 19 | 17 |
Feels °C | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | SSE 8 | ENE 9 | E 9 | E 7 | SSE 8 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | E 9 | E 9 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 |
| kJ | 194 | 217 | 160 | 125 | 99 | 135 | 199 | 134 | 73 | 41 | 36 | 982 | 680 | 641 | 618 | 586 | 575 | 484 | 268 | 234 | 225 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | S 5 | SSW 12 | E 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSW 16 | S 18 | S 16 | SSW 14 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SW 14 | SW 14 | S 6 |
| kJ | 58 | 48 | 12 | 29 | 94 | 96 | 66 | 51 | 140 | 24 | 21 | 36 | 28 | 26 | 21 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 48 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 11 | SE 12 | SSW 14 | S 5 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | S 18 | SSW 17 | — | S 10 | — | SSW 13 | — | — | S 17 | SSW 14 | SSW 12 | S 12 | — | SW 10 | S 9 |
| kJ | 4 | 6 | 18 | 5 | 29 | 24 | 173 | 237 | — | 7 | — | 156 | — | — | 6 | 21 | 15 | 3 | — | 4 | 15 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 6 | S 5 | — | — | ENE 3 | ENE 9 | ENE 6 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | SSW 3 | S 7 | S 6 | SSW 7 |
| kJ | 54 | 33 | — | — | 3 | 211 | 172 | 189 | 395 | 1023 | 2486 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 333 | 163 | 93 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 238 | 330 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 555 | 510 | 58 | 5 | 740 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 155 | 219 | 1 | 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 North 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 North Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for North Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at North Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our North 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 (North 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 North 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.
Are you planning a holiday in Durban/KwaZulu-Natal South Coast? If you are looking for accommodation near North Beach, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Durban/KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, consider staying in Durban which is 6 km (4 miles) away. Other places in and around Durban/KwaZulu-Natal South Coast where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Glenwood which is 6 km (4 miles) away, Kwamashu, Umhlanga and Mount Edgecombe.
Nearest