Surf Forecasts:
Wategos surf forecast from 15 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 19 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 9s period, ESE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 19 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 11s period, SE swell with 515 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 18 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 6ft (1.9m), 8s period with ESE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Wategos this week:
The surf forecast for Wategos over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 18) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.9m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.3m and 9s. Another secondary swell of 0.4m and 9s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Wategos in the next 16 days are 1.5m 11s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.0m 7s period and expected on Sunday (Aug 16) at 4AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Tue 18th Aug) | 6ft (1.9m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 4AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Wategos over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ll be straight with you – the next couple of weeks are a bit of a mixed bag at Wategos. There’s a pretty big gap at the start with nothing worth getting wet for, so don’t rush down there just yet. The first real glimmer of decent surf won’t show up until Monday, 17 August.
The early part of this week is a write-off. Saturday and Sunday are tiny, with swell barely hitting 1ft from the ENE, and the conditions are just poor. The combined swell energy is weak (39 Saturday morning, 37 Sunday morning), so you’re not missing a thing. There’s a long stretch of flat, small, and messy days until things finally start to kick off.
Monday, 17 August, we see a jump in size – about 7ft from the ESE, but the period is a short 7 seconds, so it’s going to be a bit lumpy and unorganised. The combined energy is moderate (418), but the wind is cross-offshore, so it’s clean enough. It’s marginal, though – not great, but a step up from the flat spell.
The real standout for this period is Wednesday, 19 August. Wednesday morning has 5ft of swell from the SE with a long 11-second period, giving it proper groundswell grunt. The combined energy hits 760 – that’s strong – and with a light breeze and cross-off wind, it’ll be clean and well-shaped. This is the best on offer, but that long period might make it a bit straight at this point break setup, so keep an eye on the tide. Wategos itself is a very consistent point break, so it’ll handle the energy well. The water temp is about 68°F, which is pretty average for this time of year.
After Wednesday, it drops off again. Thursday and Friday are poor, with small, weak swell and onshore or cross-shore winds. The weekend of the 22nd and 23rd has a bit of life with 3ft and 2ft, but it’s ordinary. Then there’s another gap of flat, tiny surf from the 24th to the 27th.
The second week has a couple of promising but less certain days. Saturday, 29 August, has a 3ft ESE swell with a solid 11-second period and light cross-off winds – good energy (472) and clean. Then Sunday, 30 August, is similar: 4ft ESE, 10-second period, clean, with combined energy of 473. Both are worth a look but don’t get your hopes too high this far out.
Overall, Wednesday 19 August is the day to circle. The rest is mostly small, sloppy, or too far out to trust.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 23mm), heaviest during Sat afternoon. Very mild (max 18°C on Sat afternoon, min 15°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 35mm), heaviest during Tue night. Very mild (max 19°C on Thu morning, min 15°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Saturday 15 | Sunday 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | |||||||||||||||
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) | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 9 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 7 | ESE 7 | E 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 29 | 29 | 31 | 33 | 33 | 331 | 406 | 425 | 403 | 378 | 423 | 402 | 515 | 496 | 334 | 219 | 153 | 114 | 57 | 59 | 111 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross | cross | on | on | on | cross-on |
High Tide | 9:48PM1.64m | 10:16AM1.33m | 10:23PM1.46m | 11:00AM1.32m | 10:58PM1.28m | 11:48AM1.28m | 11:35PM1.11m | 12:42PM1.24m | 00:20AM0.96m | 1:49PM1.21m | 1:26AM0.85m | 3:05PM1.21m | 3:01AM0.80m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 3:26PM0.07m | 4:12AM0.05m | 4:11PM0.18m | 4:44AM0.11m | 4:57PM0.32m | 5:17AM0.18m | 5:49PM0.45m | 5:52AM0.26m | 6:54PM0.56m | 6:36AM0.34m | 8:25PM0.62m | 7:36AM0.40m | 10:07PM0.59m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | |  | | | |  | |
 | 6:18 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:15 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — |
 | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:24 | — |
mm | 3 | 5 | 3 | — | 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 1 | — | 3 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 17 |
Feels °C | 14 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | E 10 | S 8 | S 8 | E 9 | SE 12 | E 9 | ESE 9 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 7 | ESE 7 | E 8 |
| kJ | 29 | 29 | 31 | 33 | 33 | 18 | 54 | 18 | 15 | 52 | 15 | 402 | 515 | 496 | 334 | 219 | 153 | 114 | 57 | 59 | 111 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 15 | S 15 | SSE 19 | SSE 18 | ESE 9 | SSE 17 | SE 18 | SE 17 | E 9 | E 9 | ESE 14 | ESE 12 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 7 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | SSE 7 |
| kJ | 9 | 4 | 36 | 30 | 8 | 30 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 129 | 82 | 59 | 56 | 35 | 35 | 41 | 54 | 44 | 10 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 8 | S 20 | E 16 | E 15 | SSE 17 | E 15 | S 15 | S 17 | SE 14 | S 13 | E 9 | E 9 | S 16 | S 11 | S 10 | ENE 9 | ESE 11 | ENE 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SE 10 |
| kJ | 1 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 29 | 4 | 4 | 22 | 7 | 13 | 15 | 7 | 5 | 20 | 8 | 8 | 11 | 8 | 23 | 22 | 4 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 7 | SSE 7 | SSE 7 | SSE 7 | SSE 7 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | — | SE 8 | — | — | WSW 3 | — | — | — | NNE 4 | NNE 5 |
| kJ | 226 | 195 | 348 | 321 | 217 | 331 | 406 | 425 | 403 | 378 | 423 | — | 163 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 11 | 28 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 2 | 53 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 53 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 53 | 1 | 1 | 210 | 1 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Coast - New South Wales | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Wategos 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 Wategos Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Wategos provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Wategos can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Wategos 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 (Wategos) 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 Wategos 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.
Wategos is 27 km (17 miles) from Ballina. If you plan a holiday in North Coast - New South Wales, look for hotels and other accommodation in Ballina. Ballina has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest