Surf Forecasts:
Skeleton Bay surf forecast from 16 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 22 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 12s period, SW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 16 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 14s period, SW swell with 1,374 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 22 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 12s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Skeleton Bay this week:
The surf forecast for Skeleton Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 22) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 12s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Skeleton Bay in the next 16 days are 1.8m 14s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 16) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 5.0m 11s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 17) at 8PM.
| Wave Type | Time (CAT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5AM (Tue 22nd Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Tue 22nd Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 12s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Wed 16th Sep) | 6ft (1.8m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Skeleton Bay over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s in store.
Right off the bat, it’s a tough start for Skeleton Bay. We’ve got a long blank run from now, Wednesday the 16th of September, all the way through to the end of the weekend. The south wind is just relentless, howling cross-on, and it’s blowing the guts out of anything that might show up. The water is sitting at 56°, which is a bit colder than normal for this time of year – you’ll feel that chill on the paddle out.
Things finally start to show a little life come Monday the 21st of September. We’ve got a 3ft SW swell rolling in with a moderate combined wave energy (277), but the wind is still a tricky onshore to cross-on. It’s not clean, and it’s not worth getting excited about. Tuesday the 22nd sees a shift. The wind swings NW to WNW, going cross-off and light, and we get a 3ft SW swell with a period of 11 seconds. The energy is modest (222 to 249), but the conditions are clean. It’s still a marginal call, a real question of the tide, but for the patient surfer, there might be a fun little bank.
Now, the real standout is further out. Keep an eye on Friday the 25th of September. The swell makes a big jump to 10ft from the SSW, with a period of 13 seconds. That’s a proper groundswell with a ton of energy behind it (3162), and the wind is light cross-onshore in the morning. This is going to be a big, powerful wave. For the experts only. Anything over 8ft is serious business at Skeleton Bay. The point will be running hard, but you’ll need to be on your game. It’s a long-range call, so don’t book the flights just yet, but the potential is huge.
After that, the swell drops back, but Sunday the 27th of September offers another window. A 6ft SW swell with 13 seconds of period, and the wind goes glassy in the afternoon. That’s the golden window: clean, lined-up waves with enough push to make it memorable. The energy is strong (954). It won’t be as big as the 25th, but it could be the pick for quality and manageability.
To sum it up: the first week is a write-off. Hang tight. The 25th of September is the big one for the big dogs, and the 27th of September is the one for everyone else looking for a clean session.
- Rusty
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 19°C on Wed morning, min 11°C on Wed night). Winds increasing (moderate winds from the SSE on Wed morning, near gales from the S by Fri afternoon). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 18°C on Sun afternoon, min 12°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the S on Sat afternoon, light winds from the WSW by Mon night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | Saturday 19 | Sunday 20 | Monday 21 | Tuesday 22 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 14 | WSW 12 | SSW 10 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | SW 18 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 10 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 1374 | 905 | 268 | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 466 | 392 | 341 | 380 | 444 | 295 | 277 | 248 | 232 | 213 | 198 | 127 |
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-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross | glassy |
High Tide | 6:17PM1.18m | 6:44AM1.08m | 6:59PM1.05m | 7:37AM0.98m | 8:06PM0.95m | 9:13AM0.91m | 10:06PM0.91m | 11:15AM0.95m | 11:48PM0.97m | 12:19PM1.06m | 00:40AM1.08m | 12:58PM1.18m | 1:17AM1.19m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 12:01PM0.38m | 00:25AM0.39m | 12:41PM0.49m | 1:13AM0.51m | 1:42PM0.59m | 2:37AM0.60m | 3:47PM0.64m | 4:44AM0.59m | 5:36PM0.58m | 5:58AM0.52m | 6:31PM0.48m | 6:43AM0.43m | 7:08PM0.37m | ||||||||
 | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | |
 | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — |
 | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:53 | — | — | 6:53 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:55 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 19 | 17 | 13 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 14 | 17 | 18 | 14 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 14 |
Feels °C | 13 | 10 | 4 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 12 | 14 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 14 | WSW 12 | — | — | — | — | SW 18 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | S 8 | S 8 | S 8 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 10 |
| kJ | 1374 | 905 | 268 | 57 | — | — | — | — | 12 | 466 | 392 | 341 | 380 | 444 | 295 | 234 | 181 | 103 | 213 | 198 | 127 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | SW 15 | WSW 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 16 | — | SW 15 | — | — | — | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | S 8 | S 7 | SSW 13 |
| kJ | — | 226 | 149 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 41 | — | 134 | — | — | — | 277 | 248 | 232 | 57 | 24 | 116 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 15 | SW 14 | SSW 7 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9 | 51 | 15 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 4 | SSW 6 | SSW 9 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | S 10 | S 9 | SSW 10 | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | — | — | — | N 3 | NNW 3 | — |
| kJ | 20 | 383 | 2749 | 2311 | 4292 | 5491 | 3249 | 3123 | 1895 | 694 | 978 | 601 | 495 | 473 | 465 | — | — | — | 5 | 2 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1146 | 730 | 730 | 1178 | 1727 | 501 | 501 | 2084 | 471 | 501 | 784 | 471 | 729 | 1178 | 343 | 501 | 811 | 471 | 501 | 730 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Swakopmund | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Namibia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Skeleton Bay 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 Skeleton Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Skeleton Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Skeleton Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Skeleton Bay 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 (Skeleton Bay) 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 Skeleton Bay 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.
Nearest