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Umhlanga Surf Report

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SURF RATING
POOR
★★☆☆☆
Marginal: chest-to-head-high waves on short, wind-driven swell, with a little cross-shore texture.
WAVE
1.8 m
SWELL
1.2m @ 6s
WIND
11 km/h Cross-shore
WATER
21.4°C

★★☆☆☆

Marginal: chest-to-head-high waves on short, wind-driven swell, with a little cross-shore texture.

Swell: 1.2 m @ 6 s (SE)

Wave height: 1.8 m

Wind: 11 km/h N Cross-shore

Sea temp: 21.4 °C · Wetsuit: Shorty / springsuit

Best window today: 06:00–08:00 (lightest wind)

🧬 Break DNA
34% match
Today: off its ideal window today
🌊 Wave type
Beach & reef
🧭 Best swell
E groundswell, 11–16s
💨 Best wind
W offshore
🏄 Board
Shortboard
📈 Skill
Intermediate–advanced
Ideal wind & swell are derived from the way this coast faces; break type is local knowledge. Match blends today’s swell angle, wind & period.

🌊 Why it’s reading like this right now

Cross-shore windwave direction
  • Short, wind-driven SE swell at 6s is wrapping into the bank
  • 11 km/h cross-shore wind gives some texture
  • Not fully aligned today — pick your moment on the timeline above.
Umhlanga surf mission card
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🏄 When to paddle out today

🏄 Reading today’s surf…
00:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.8m chest-head · 11km/h Cross01:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.8m chest-head · 10km/h Cross02:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.8m chest-head · 10km/h Cross03:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.8m chest-head · 11km/h Cross04:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 11km/h Cross05:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 11km/h Cross06:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 12km/h Cross07:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 13km/h Cross08:00 — Fun (★★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 13km/h Cross09:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 15km/h Onshore10:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 17km/h Onshore11:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 19km/h Onshore12:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.7m chest-head · 22km/h Onshore13:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.8m chest-head · 24km/h Onshore14:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.8m chest-head · 25km/h Onshore15:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.9m chest-head · 27km/h Onshore16:00 — Marginal (★★) · 1.9m chest-head · 26km/h Onshore17:00 — Marginal (★★) · 2.0m chest-head · 23km/h Onshore18:00 — Marginal (★★) · 2.0m chest-head · 22km/h Onshore19:00 — Marginal (★★) · 2.1m chest-head · 24km/h Onshore20:00 — Marginal (★★) · 2.1m chest-head · 24km/h Onshore21:00 — Marginal (★★) · 2.0m chest-head · 21km/h Onshore22:00 — Marginal (★★) · 2.0m chest-head · 19km/h Onshore23:00 — Fun (★★★) · 2.0m chest-head · 17km/h Crossnow00:0006:0012:0018:0024:00
■ epic   ■ clean   ■ fun   ■ marginal   ■ flat   ■ dawn/dusk · tap an hour

🎒 Pack for this session

🏄 Board
Shortboard
🤿 Wetsuit
Shorty / springsuit
🧴 Bring
Reef-safe sunscreen
🦶 Bring
Booties for the rocks
🌅Dawn window:Best quality, coolest — usually the quietest crowd
Crowd estimate is a comfort/timing proxy from conditions & day of week — not a live crowd count.
Swell & wind
NESW
■ swell in   ■ wind (green=offshore/good)   offshore zone
Spot match
Swell anglePeriodSizeWindSea state
5-day wave & wind forecast
WedThuFriSatSunMon0.0m1.0m2.1m01327now
■ wave height (m)   ── wind (km/h, right)

7-Day Surf Forecast

DayRatingWavePeriodSwellMidday wind
Wed 9 Sep ★★☆☆☆ 2.0 m 6 s ESE 22 km/h Onshore
Thu 10 Sep ★★☆☆☆ 1.7 m 6 s E 13 km/h Onshore
Fri 11 Sep ★★★☆☆ 1.4 m 6 s E 23 km/h Cross
Sat 12 Sep ★★☆☆☆ 1.1 m 8 s S 14 km/h Onshore
Sun 13 Sep ★★☆☆☆ 1.5 m 7 s SSE 19 km/h Onshore
Mon 14 Sep ★★★☆☆ 2.3 m 8 s SSE 20 km/h Onshore
Tue 15 Sep ★★☆☆☆ 2.5 m 7 s E 32 km/h Onshore

Daily peak wave height, mean swell period & direction, midday wind. Rating is our surf-quality score.

🌊 Today's tide (nearest station)

00:0006:0012:0018:0024:00H 02:38L 08:44H 15:00L 21:08now

☀️ Sun & skin — out on the water all day

Sunrise 05:59 · Sunset 17:46 · Peak UV 7

Surfers & anglers get the highest UV dose of anyone. Recommended: SPF 50, reapply every 2 hours and after every session.

Shop SPF 50 sunscreen →

Surf/wave: Open-Meteo Marine. Sun/UV/pressure: Open-Meteo. Tides: Stormglass model. Solunar is an approximate guide. Generated Wed, 09 Sep 2026 00:13 SAST.

Aerial map — Umhlanga

Crayonised aerial map of Umhlanga
Main Beach
Bronze Beach
Peak

Hand-styled from NGI 0.25 m national aerial. Markers show the peak, channel & hazards — indicative local knowledge, not live conditions or navigation advice; tides, banks, rips & hazards change, so use your own eyes on the day.

About Umhlanga — Surf Local Knowledge

Umhlanga Rocks is an upmarket coastal town just north of Durban, its palm-lined promenade and landmark red-and-white lighthouse fronting a warm-water beach on the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast. It is a busy, well-developed holiday and residential hub with a Blue Flag main beach and an easygoing subtropical atmosphere.

The surf is a beach break, offering consistent, generally user-friendly waves that suit beginners and intermediates, with punchier days when a solid swell arrives. It works on south to south-east swell with offshore winds from the west, and the water stays warm year-round. As a managed KZN bathing beach it has lifeguards and shark nets, which are lifted during the winter sardine run. Crowds are common in the main bathing area, so surfers spread to the quieter banks; watch for rip currents and the rocky sections that give the town its name.

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