
Surf Forecasts:
The Heads surf forecast from 7 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 10 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 13s period, SSW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 10 Jul, 5AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 13s period, SSW swell with 3,978 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 7 Jul, 5PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 12s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Heads this week:
The surf forecast for The Heads over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Jul 07) at 5PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.8m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 10s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Heads in the next 16 days are 3.5m 13s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Jul 10) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.2m 12s period and expected on Saturday (Jul 11) at 11AM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5PM (Tue 7th Jul) | 6ft (1.8m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Fri 10th Jul) | 11ft (3.5m) 13s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Fri 10th Jul) | 11ft (3.5m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Heads over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Alright, let's get into it. The Heads is our only option this period, so we're focusing all our attention there.
The forecast kicks off with a decent pulse of swell, and honestly, Tuesday (July 7th) is the standout of the whole window. We've got a solid 6ft swell rolling in from the SW, and get this – Tuesday afternoon goes glassy. Absolutely dead calm. That's a rare treat for The Heads, and those waves are going to be silky smooth. The combined energy is sitting at 1037 (moderate), so there's some proper push behind it.
Water temp is 63°, which is pretty much spot on for this time of year, no nasty surprises there.
Wednesday (July 8th) still has size at 7ft, but the wind switches to a cross-shore and then a cross-onshore mess. The energy jumps up (1891 and 2323), but the quality drops. Thursday (9th) through to the weekend sees the swell hang in there, big sets up to 10ft, but the wind is never really your friend. It stays cross or cross-on, and the wave comment flags marginal conditions. That's a lot of water moving (combined energy hits 3745 on Friday morning!), but without clean wind, it'll be a battle.
Friday afternoon (July 10th) is another glimmer – glassy again with 10ft of SSW swell. That's proper size though, over 8ft, so this is expert territory only. If you've got the skills and the gear, that's your session, but it’s a heavy one.
After that, the swell drops away steadily. By Sunday (July 12th) we're down around 4-5ft, and the energy drops to 764 (weak-moderate). The following week stays in that 3ft to 6ft range, with a few nice glassy mornings – like Tuesday morning (July 14th) with 5ft ESE swell and glass, and Friday morning (July 17th) with 4ft SW swell and glass – but nothing with the punch of that first Tuesday.
There's a nasty spell on Wednesday afternoon (July 15th) where we see 25 mph westerly winds and a score of zero. That'll be a total washout.
Looking further ahead, there's a promising window on Monday morning (July 20th) – 6ft WSW swell, glassy conditions, combined energy of 1129 (moderate). That looks clean and fun for intermediate surfers.
Then it fades into the weeds. The last few days (July 22nd) are tiny, with 2ft to 2ft and poor wind. The energy drops to 346 (weak). Not much to get excited about.
All in all, Tuesday afternoon (July 7th) and Friday afternoon (July 10th) are your true standouts. The Tuesday for its perfect glass and fun size, the Friday for its big, clean power for the brave. The rest is a mixed bag of average conditions.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Wed night. Very mild (max 18°C on Wed afternoon, min 11°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 9mm), mostly falling on Sat morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Sun afternoon, min 11°C on Fri morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 7 | Wednesday 8 | Thursday 9 | Friday 10 | Saturday 11 | Sunday 12 | Monday 13 | |||||||||||||||
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 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | ESE 8 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
1065 | 970 | 1498 | 1569 | 1450 | 2444 | 3313 | 2678 | 3764 | 3731 | 3287 | 2815 | 2079 | 1096 | 805 | 478 | 379 | 589 | 388 | 406 | 375 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | glassy | glassy | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross | glassy | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | off |
High Tide | 8:36PM1.48m | 9:05AM1.23m | 9:46PM1.44m | 10:33AM1.20m | 11:10PM1.43m | 12:05PM1.25m | 00:31AM1.50m | 1:19PM1.36m | 1:38AM1.60m | 2:17PM1.51m | 2:34AM1.69m | 3:08PM1.65m | 3:23AM1.77m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 2:05PM0.42m | 3:05AM0.50m | 3:08PM0.50m | 4:23AM0.51m | 4:29PM0.55m | 5:49AM0.47m | 6:00PM0.52m | 7:05AM0.37m | 7:18PM0.42m | 8:06AM0.25m | 8:21PM0.30m | 8:57AM0.13m | 9:15PM0.19m | ||||||||
7:33 | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | 7:33 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | |
— | 5:30 | — | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | 5:34 | — | — | 5:35 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 17 | 14 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 18 | 19 | 15 |
Feels °C | 16 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 17 | 17 | 13 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SE 8 | SE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 |
1065 | 970 | 1498 | 1569 | 1450 | 2444 | 3313 | 2678 | 3764 | 3731 | 3287 | 2815 | 2079 | 1096 | 805 | 276 | 262 | 477 | 388 | 406 | 375 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | SSW 18 | SSW 17 | ESE 9 | SE 17 | SE 16 | SE 15 | SE 14 | SE 13 | — | W 12 | W 12 | SE 7 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 |
68 | 58 | 38 | 283 | 601 | 8 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 7 | — | 12 | 3 | 155 | 478 | 379 | 225 | 194 | 169 | 140 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | S 22 | SSW 20 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | E 10 | — | — | — | SE 14 | — | — | — | — | W 13 | SW 16 | SSW 16 | S 10 | SSE 9 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 |
— | 9 | 127 | 31 | 18 | 2 | — | — | — | 7 | — | — | — | — | 3 | 10 | 25 | 30 | 16 | 22 | 19 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | W 3 | SW 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SE 7 | — | — | — | ESE 8 | — | — | — |
— | — | — | 8 | 254 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 261 | — | — | — | 589 | — | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 29 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 8 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Garden Route | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the The Heads Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Heads provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Heads can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Heads 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 (The Heads) 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 The Heads 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.
Are you planning a holiday in Garden Route? If you are looking for accommodation near The Heads, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Garden Route, consider staying in Knysna which is 4 km (2 miles) away. Other places in and around Garden Route where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Plettenberg Bay which is 28 km (17 miles) away, George, Mossel Bay and Oudtshoorn.










