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The Heads Surf Forecast
/ Garden Route (22 surf breaks) /
Surf Forecasts:
The Heads surfForecast / Garden Route / South Africa
48hr Weather and Surf, issued 1 pm Sunday 24 May 2026 SASTForecast update in hr min s Forecast update imminent
The Heads surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's The Heads sea temperature is
17.7° C
(Which is slightly cooler than normal)How big are the waves at The Heads today?
The current surf forecast for The Heads at 8PM is: 1.1m 13s primary swell from a Southwest direction and 0.6m 16s secondary swell from a South-southwest direction (forecast issued at 01:00pm May 24). The wind direction is predicted to be cross-offshore and the swell rating is 2.
| Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height | Wave Period |
|---|---|---|
| Morning (24 May) | 4.5ft (1.3m) | 14s |
| Afternoon (24 May) | 4.5ft (1.3m) | 13s |
| Evening (24 May) | 3.5ft (1.1m) | 13s |
Table - waves today at The Heads. (Swell directed towards the surf break)
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Mon afternoon, min 14°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sun 24 | Monday 25 | Tuesday 26 | Wed 27 | |||||||||||||||||||||
11 AM | 2 PM | 5 PM | 8 PM | 11 PM | 2 AM | 5 AM | 8 AM | 11 AM | 2 PM | 5 PM | 8 PM | 11 PM | 2 AM | 5 AM | 8 AM | 11 AM | 2 PM | 5 PM | 8 PM | 11 PM | 2 AM | 5 AM | 8 AM | |
Swell Height Map |    |    |    |    | ||||||||||||||||||||
SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 14 | SW 13 | |
570 | 637 | 386 | 386 | 386 | 911 | 1383 | 1482 | 1902 | 2247 | 2358 | 2293 | 1857 | 1537 | 1326 | 1127 | 932 | 736 | 833 | 700 | 603 | 598 | 1363 | 1247 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
glassy | cross-on | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-off | off | glassy | glassy | off | |
High Tide | 10:35AM1.17m | 11:15PM1.39m | 11:51AM1.21m | 00:14AM1.45m | 12:47PM1.28m | 1:01AM1.50m | ||||||||||||||||||
Low Tide | 4:38PM0.56m | 5:52AM0.54m | 5:48PM0.54m | 6:48AM0.46m | 6:43PM0.50m | 7:30AM0.39m | ||||||||||||||||||
 | |  |  |  | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:18 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:20 | — |
 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5:28 | — | — | — | — | 5:28 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Temp °C | 19 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 20 | 21 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 14 |
19 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 14 | SW 13 |
 kJ | 570 | 637 | 386 | 386 | 386 | 911 | 1383 | 1482 | 1902 | 2247 | 2358 | 2293 | 1857 | 1537 | 1326 | 1127 | 932 | 736 | 833 | 700 | 603 | 583 | 1363 | 1247 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 18 | SSE 12 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 6 | E 6 | SSW 16 | SW 16 | SW 14 | SE 12 | SSW 21 |
| kJ | 120 | 52 | 175 | 175 | 232 | 66 | 65 | 63 | 40 | 39 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 34 | 24 | 23 | 13 | 7 | 11 | 171 | 400 | 598 | 23 | 175 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 12 | E 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 5 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | E 6 | E 6 | E 6 | E 9 | E 9 |
| kJ | 55 | 36 | 47 | 68 | 68 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 7 | 17 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ENE 10 | — | — | — | — | — | W 3 | WSW 4 | WSW 5 | SW 5 | SW 5 | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | 22 | 42 | 38 | 41 | — | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Garden Route | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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