The Heads 48 hour detailed Surf Forecast

Lat Long: 34.07° S 23.06° E

Issued: 1 am 12 Sep 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in hr min

Today's The Heads sea temperature is

15.6°C

The Heads surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.

Surf Forecasts:

How big are the waves at The Heads today (12 Sep):

Morning surf: Morning surf (12 Sep, local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 12s period with SW swell.
Afternoon surf: Afternoon surf (12 Sep, local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 15s period with SW swell.
Evening surf: Evening surf (12 Sep, local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 17s period with SW swell.

The current surf forecast for The Heads at 10AM is: 1.4m 14s primary swell from a Southwest direction and 1.1m 7s secondary swell from a South-southeast direction (forecast issued at 01:00am September 12). The wind direction is predicted to be glassy and the swell rating is 3.

Time (SAST) & Date	Wave Height	Wave Period
Morning (12 Sep)	3.5ft (1.1m)	12s
Afternoon (12 Sep)	6ft (1.8m)	15s
Evening (12 Sep)	7ft (2.1m)	17s

Table - waves today at The Heads. (Swell directed towards the surf break)

	Short Range Forecast Moderate rain (total 16mm), heaviest on Sat night. Warm (max 22°C on Mon morning, min 15°C on Sat night). Mainly fresh winds.
	Saturday 12								Sunday 13								Monday 14
	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	11 AM	2 PM	5 PM	8 PM	11 PM
Rating (10 max)	2	2	2	3	3	3	0	2	2	!	2	!	!	!	!	4	4	4	4	3	3	3	3	2
Swell Height Map See all maps
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s)	SW 12	SW 11	SW 12	SW 14	SW 14	SW 16	SW 17	SW 16	SSW 16	ESE 9	SW 15	ESE 9	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10
Wave Graph
kJ	478	406	309	825	1307	1694	2396	2349	2472	2343	2037	1908	2481	2474	1972	1677	1482	1247	1149	1053	863	833	667	610
Wind (km/h)	ENE	WNW	WSW	WNW	S	SSE	SE	ESE	ESE	E	E	E	ESE	E	E	NE	NE	NNE	NNW	WSW	WSW	SSE	SSW	E
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy	glassy	glassy	glassy	glassy	on	on	cross-on	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross-off	cross-off	off	off	cross	cross	glassy	glassy	cross
High Tide		4:06AM1.79m				4:21PM1.95m				4:36AM1.75m				4:50PM1.88m					5:04AM1.68m				5:18PM1.77m
Low Tide				10:09AM-0.01m				10:35PM0.01m				10:38AM0.04m					11:02PM0.08m				11:05AM0.12m


	—	6:31	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	6:30	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	6:28	—	—	—	—	—	—
	—	—	—	—	—	6:15	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	6:16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	6:17	—	—
mm	—	—	1	—	—	—	1	3	4	1	—	—	—	—	—	2	—	—	—	—	3	1	—	—
Temp °C	15	16	16	17	19	18	17	15	16	16	16	17	19	18	17	18	18	21	22	21	17	17	17	17
Feels °C	15	17	17	19	19	19	15	11	13	13	13	14	17	15	15	19	18	20	22	20	18	18	18	18
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s)	SW 12	SW 11	SSE 7	SW 14	SW 14	SW 16	SW 17	SE 8	SSW 16	SW 16	SW 15	SSW 15	SW 14	SW 14	SW 14	SW 14	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10
kJ	478	406	116	825	1307	1694	2396	1024	2472	2205	2037	1714	1554	1187	1019	804	1482	1247	1149	1053	863	833	667	610
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s)	SSE 7	SSE 7	SW 12	SSE 7	SSE 7	SSE 8	SE 13	SW 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	SW 14	SW 13	SW 13	SW 13	SW 13	SW 12	SW 12	SW 12	SW 12
kJ	163	138	309	110	142	270	7	2349	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	872	792	632	543	527	494	373	361	303
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s)	E 10	SSW 15	SSW 10	SSW 10	E 10	SE 13	SE 13	ESE 8	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	SSW 5	SSW 6
kJ	18	87	106	114	8	7	7	323	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	32	27
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s)	—	—	—	—	—	SSE 8	SSE 8	SE 9	ESE 9	ESE 9	ESE 9	ESE 9	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	ESE 10	—	—	—	—	SW 4	SW 5	—	—
kJ	—	—	—	—	—	393	575	1736	1809	2343	1968	1908	2481	2474	1972	1677	—	—	—	—	12	49	—	—
Nearest Offshore or Glassy	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Wreck Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Cape St Francis Eastern Cape (S)	Albatross Eastern Cape (S)	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Bikini Beach (Gordon's Bay) Cape Town	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	Murphys (Buffalo Bay Beach) Garden Route	Murphys (Buffalo Bay Beach) Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	The Heads Garden Route	Buffalo Bay Wildside Garden Route
Rating (10 max)	2	2	2	3	3	4	2	4	5	5	5	5	1	5	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	3	3	3
Distance (km)	0	0	0	0	30	26	164	172	26	26	26	26	387	26	26	0	0	0	0	7	7	0	0	8
Best forecast wave conditions in Garden Route	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Goukamma River Mouth	Gerickes Point	Santos Reef	Gerickes Point			Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point		Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Fish Boma	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Keurbooms	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point	Gerickes Point
Rating (10 max)	3	3	3	4	3	4			5	5	5	5		5	4	5	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Koeel Bay Overberg	Goukamma River Mouth Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Kamer Van Cape Town	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Cape St Martin West Coast	Treskostraal West Coast	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Paranoia Overberg	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Fish Boma Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Vleesbaai Overberg	Sea Vista Eastern Cape (S)	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Gerickes Point Garden Route	Periwinkles Eastern Cape - Wild Coast	Periwinkles Eastern Cape - Wild Coast
Rating (10 max)	3	3	3	4	4	4	5	5	5	5	5	5	3	5	4	5	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Header Global	Trial Harbour Australia	Shipwrecks Bay-Peaks New Zealand	Shipwrecks Bay-Peaks New Zealand	White Rock - The Spit New Zealand	White Rock - The Spit New Zealand	Asu Indonesia	Asu Indonesia	Asu Indonesia	Papatowai New Zealand	Papatowai New Zealand	Papatowai New Zealand	Papatowai New Zealand	Ouano Lefts New Caledonia	Frigates Fiji	Frigates Fiji	Ouano Lefts New Caledonia	Injidup Carpark Australia	Gas Bay Australia	Cow Bombie Australia	Restaurants Fiji	Gas Bay Australia	Gas Bay Australia	Cloudbreak Fiji	Cloudbreak Fiji
Rating (10 max)	8	6	7	7	6	5	5	5	9	9	8	6	6	5	5	6	5	6	6	5	6	6	5	5

Map Icons:
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Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

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The Heads 48 hour detailed Surf Forecast

How big are the waves at The Heads today (12 Sep):

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