Surf Forecasts:
North wall surf forecast from 28 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 29 Aug, 1AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 11s period, SSE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 28 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 11s period, SSE swell with 631 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 29 Aug, 1AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 11s period with SSE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for North wall this week:
The surf forecast for North wall over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 29) at 1AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.5m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at North wall in the next 16 days are 1.6m 11s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 28) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.2m 5s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 7PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1AM (Sat 29th Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 1AM (Sat 29th Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 10PM (Fri 28th Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for North wall over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, I’m Rusty, and let’s get straight into it for Northwall. We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but there’s some decent options coming up if you’re patient.
The week ahead is a mixed bag, with the best surf arriving around the 1st and 10th of September, but we’ll have to work through some onshore slop first.
Friday the 28th is a write-off – 5ft from the SSE but with a cross-on SE wind, and the combined swell energy is only moderate at 760. Just poor conditions, so you’re better off doing something else.
Saturday the 29th brings a bit of hope early. The morning sees 4ft from the SSE (period 10s) with a cross-off SSW breeze, and the water temp is 69°, which is about average for this time of year. The energy drops to 396, but it’s clean. Expect good surf conditions, but it’s not huge. The afternoon gets messy with rain showers and 20 km/h south winds, dropping the swell to 3ft and making it marginal.
Sunday the 30th has the biggest swell of the early window – 7ft from the SSE (period 9s) with a cross-off S wind at 20 km/h. Combined energy is 640, so moderate. The waves will be there, but it’s still marked as marginal, likely due to the wind speed. Not a standout.
Monday the 31st and Tuesday the 1st are where it gets interesting. Monday is steady at 5ft from the SSE with S winds, but the real gem is Tuesday morning (September 1st). That’s the highlight early on: 3ft from the SSE, period 11s, with glassy conditions (SSE wind at 5 km/h). Combined energy is 368, and it’s clean, good surf. This is the one to aim for if you want small, tidy waves with no bump.
From Tuesday afternoon through the rest of the first week, it goes downhill. Strong cross-onshore winds from the NNE and dropping swell – down to 2ft by Thursday and Friday. There’s a gap of several days here with no real recommendations. Friday the 4th morning is glassy but only 2ft, which is surfable but very ordinary. The rest is poor.
The weekend of the 5th and 6th sees a spike in swell size but with terrible wind – 5ft from the NNE on Saturday afternoon but with 30 km/h cross-on winds, making it lumpy and poor. This setup is more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.
Then, another standout arrives on Thursday, September 10th, in the morning. This is the big one for the longer range. 5ft from the SSE, period 12s (a nice groundswell), with a glassy SSE wind at 0 km/h. Combined energy is 560, so moderate, but those smooth conditions will make it clean and well-shaped. This is promising, though more than a week out, so keep an eye on it. The 12-second period means longer sets, easier paddling, and better shape – a real treat if it holds.
After that, Friday the 11th and Saturday the 12th get messy again, with cross-shore winds and a rising 7ft on Saturday but with a short 6-second period, which is just sloppy.
So, overall, there are two standouts: Tuesday morning (September 1st) and Thursday morning (September 10th). The 1st is the most reliable, with glassy clean surf at 3ft. The 10th has more size (5ft) and longer period, but it’s further out, so treat it as promising but less certain. In between, there are long gaps of poor conditions, so pick your windows wisely.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 4mm), mostly falling on Sat night. Very mild (max 18°C on Fri afternoon, min 14°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 25°C on Thu morning, min 16°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Fri 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 6 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 6 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | S 11 | S 10 | S 11 | SSE 10 |
Wave Graph | ||||||||||||||||||||
718 | 515 | 338 | 218 | 280 | 600 | 456 | 103 | 310 | 310 | 181 | 214 | 147 | 164 | 161 | 121 | 82 | 56 | 58 | 58 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 8:27PM1.58m | 8:49AM1.28m | 9:01PM1.55m | 9:24AM1.34m | 9:35PM1.48m | 10:01AM1.38m | 10:12PM1.39m | 10:42AM1.42m | 10:52PM1.28m | 11:30AM1.43m | 11:38PM1.16m | 12:28PM1.43m | 00:36AM1.03m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:54AM0.21m | 2:42PM0.24m | 3:23AM0.19m | 3:23PM0.24m | 3:54AM0.20m | 4:07PM0.27m | 4:27AM0.22m | 4:56PM0.33m | 5:04AM0.26m | 5:53PM0.41m | 5:47AM0.31m | 7:03PM0.49m | ||||||||
— | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | |
5:28 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | |
mm | — | — | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 22 | 20 | 20 | 25 | 23 | 22 |
Feels °C | 15 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 14 | 20 | 17 | 18 | 22 | 19 | 19 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | E 8 | E 8 | E 9 | SSE 10 | ENE 9 | SSE 17 | SSE 8 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | S 11 | NNE 5 | S 11 | SSE 10 |
718 | 515 | 338 | 218 | 36 | 36 | 43 | 98 | 25 | 117 | 181 | 214 | 147 | 164 | 161 | 121 | 82 | 12 | 58 | 58 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | E 9 | E 9 | NE 10 | N 10 | NE 15 | E 9 | SE 9 | E 8 | SSE 15 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 9 | S 10 | E 10 | E 10 |
37 | 55 | 54 | 56 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 41 | 22 | 22 | 135 | 73 | 71 | 71 | 68 | 67 | 45 | 56 | 47 | 47 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 11 | NE 11 | NE 11 | NE 7 | — | E 15 | S 14 | S 17 | SSE 19 | E 12 | E 11 | SSE 16 | SSE 15 | NE 12 | NE 4 | NE 11 | NE 11 | E 9 | NE 10 | NE 10 |
5 | 5 | 4 | 2 | — | 4 | 15 | 5 | 69 | 3 | 36 | 81 | 47 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 45 | 4 | 4 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 6 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | — | — | — | NE 4 | — | NNE 4 | N 4 | N 5 | NNE 4 | NNE 5 |
— | — | — | 48 | 280 | 600 | 456 | 103 | 310 | 310 | — | — | — | 9 | — | 16 | 17 | 21 | 25 | 43 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 27 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 38 | 26 | 32 | 8 | 26 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 281 | 0 | 0 | 189 | 0 | 0 | 154 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Coast - New South Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the North wall Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for North wall provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at North wall can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our North wall 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 wall) 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 wall 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.
North wall is 3 km (2 miles) from Ballina. If you plan a holiday in North Coast - New South Wales, look for hotels and other accommodation in Ballina. Ballina has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.











