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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 Friday 15 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
18.2° C
(Which is slightly cooler than normal)How big are the waves at The Heads today?
The current surf forecast for The Heads at 4PM is: 2.5m 14s primary swell from a South direction and 1.7m 11s secondary swell from a Southwest direction (forecast issued at 01:00pm May 15). The wind direction is predicted to be cross-onshore.
| Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height | Wave Period |
|---|---|---|
| Morning (15 May) | 10ft (3.0m) | 14s |
| Afternoon (15 May) | 8ft (2.5m) | 14s |
| Evening (15 May) | 8ft (2.4m) | 14s |
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 22°C on Sun morning, min 14°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fri 15 | Saturday 16 | Sunday 17 | Mon 18 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 |    |    |    |    | ||||||||||||||||||||
S 14 | S 14 | S 14 | S 14 | S 13 | S 13 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 13 | SW 12 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | |
3244 | 2987 | 2471 | 2333 | 2029 | 1642 | 1812 | 1514 | 1280 | 1162 | 891 | 736 | 657 | 549 | 354 | 342 | 233 | 370 | 347 | 189 | 189 | 471 | 451 | 509 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
cross | cross | cross-on | glassy | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-off | off | off | off | off | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | |
High Tide | 2:39PM1.66m | 2:52AM1.90m | 3:21PM1.72m | 3:35AM1.91m | 4:04PM1.74m | 4:19AM1.87m | ||||||||||||||||||
Low Tide | 8:32AM0.05m | 8:38PM0.13m | 9:13AM-0.01m | 9:21PM0.09m | 9:55AM-0.02m | 10:06PM0.09m | ||||||||||||||||||
 | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | |
 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7:13 | — |
 | — | — | 5:35 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5:34 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | — | — | 5:32 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Temp °C | 18 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 19 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 22 | 22 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
15 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 21 | 20 | 17 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 17 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 14 | S 14 | S 14 | S 14 | S 13 | S 13 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 13 | SW 12 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 |
 kJ | 3244 | 2987 | 2471 | 2333 | 2029 | 1642 | 1812 | 1514 | 1280 | 1162 | 891 | 736 | 657 | 549 | 354 | 342 | 233 | 370 | 347 | 189 | 189 | 471 | 451 | 509 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 11 | SW 11 | SW 11 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | S 13 | S 13 | S 13 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | SW 11 | WSW 11 | WSW 11 | S 11 | S 11 | ESE 7 | E 7 | S 13 | S 13 | S 12 |
| kJ | 634 | 627 | 726 | 710 | 660 | 622 | 1359 | 1200 | 1028 | 830 | 714 | 628 | 538 | 456 | 273 | 207 | 204 | 233 | 189 | 60 | 44 | 319 | 263 | 171 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 15 | SW 15 | SW 16 | SW 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 7 | SW 10 | SW 12 | E 7 | E 7 | E 7 |
| kJ | 179 | 238 | 227 | 330 | 400 | 705 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 47 | 64 | 50 | 42 | 55 | 59 | 64 | 100 | 152 | 33 | 32 | 22 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ESE 4 | ESE 4 | E 6 | E 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | WNW 2 | WNW 3 | WNW 3 | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 10 | 23 | 105 | 92 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 3 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 8 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 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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