Beach
left
Level 5/10

Ballina South Wall

Ballina, Australia
🌀Strong rips🦈Sharks

Ballina South Wall is a river mouth break that forms consistent lefts where the Richmond River meets the sea. The sand deposited by the river creates shifting banks against the south training wall, producing peeling lefts that can be remarkably consistent when the banks are right. The wave works best on clean SE groundswell with light WSW winds. Ballina has unfortunately gained notoriety for shark encounters, so awareness is essential. Despite this, the wave's consistency and quality keep locals coming back.

10-Day Forecast
Sat15
28
Poor
1.3m@7s
15km/h
Sun16
31
Poor
1.6m@8s
19km/h
Mon17
27
Poor
1.9m@8s
20km/h
Tue18
40
Poor
1.8m@8s
12km/h
Wed19
51
Fair
1.4m@7s
11km/h
Thu20
47
Fair
0.9m@7s
9km/h
Fri21
0
Poor
0.5m@6s
15km/h
Sat22
17
Poor
0.6m@6s
5km/h
Sun23
0
Poor
0.6m@7s
12km/h
Mon24
0
Poor
0.6m@7s
16km/h
5+ days out, less certain

Today's Conditions

Find Flights
Best session: MorningAM 13 km/h · PM 17 km/h
Swell
1.3m
SSE(157°)
Score: 21/25
Period
7s
Short period / windswell
Score: 4/25
Wind
15km/h
S(188°)
Score: 1/25
Weather
16°C
0.5mm67%
First light 5:48amSunrise 6:18amSunset 5:22pmLast light 5:52pm
Windswell0.5m@3sSecondary0.4mConfidence
100%

Location & Conditions

Loading map...
0°45°90°135°180°225°270°315°NESW
Swell
Wind
Showing forecast for today

Hourly Forecast, Tide & Strike Windows

6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
6am
9am
12pm
3pm
6pm
°C
12°
15°
16°
17°
16°
12°
17°
19°
19°
15°
15°
18°
19°
18°
17°
13°
15°
18°
16°
15°
10°
16°
19°
18°
16°
10°
16°
20°
19°
18°
15°
20°
22°
22°
20°
16°
19°
19°
17°
16°
15°
17°
19°
19°
18°
13°
16°
18°
19°
18°
2m1.0
sec
7s
8s
9s
6s
6s
6s
6s
6s
6s
12s
7s
7s
12s
8s
10s
7s
7s
11s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
8s
8s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
6s
6s
7s
5s
5s
6s
6s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
7s
swell
windkm/h
13g24
13g30
19g38
18g41
16g31
17g32
14g28
21g44
21g46
18g36
18g33
22g46
22g48
21g48
17g32
7g13
11g26
15g37
15g43
9g31
14g23
11g26
9g27
11g31
8g27
11g19
7g19
6g23
9g24
12g26
9g24
13g31
16g35
19g39
18g41
4g24
5g17
6g16
4g19
5g17
10g27
13g30
13g33
11g35
9g32
10g22
17g35
18g41
16g41
15g40
tidem
3:47am0.3m
9:47am1.6m
3:36pm0.5m
9:59pm1.9m
4:23am0.4m
10:33am1.7m
4:21pm0.6m
10:34pm1.8m
4:58am0.5m
11:15am1.6m
5:13pm0.7m
5:33am0.5m
12:03pm1.6m
6:10pm0.8m
6:13am0.5m
1:03pm1.5m
7:23pm0.8m
6:49am0.6m
2:03pm1.5m
8:43pm0.8m
1:51am1.1m
7:48am0.7m
3:10pm1.6m
10:03pm0.8m
3:15am1.1m
9:03am0.7m
4:19pm1.6m
4:33am1.1m
10:09am0.6m
5:08pm1.6m
5:25am1.1m
Night

Tide times today

3:47 am
Low tide - 0.34m
9:47 am
High tide - 1.65m
3:36 pm
Low tide - 0.45m
9:59 pm
High tide - 1.93m
Times shown in spot-local time.

Strike Score Breakdown

28
Poor
Components
Swell Direction12/25
Swell Size21/25
Swell Period4/25
Wind1/25
Raw Score38/100
Adjustments
💨 Gusty Wind-5
⚠️ Weak Component-5
Adjusted Score28/100
Confidence
Multiplier×1.00
Final Score28

Plan Your Strike

Return flights to BNK, departing today with a 5-day trip window.

Search Flights on Skyscanner
See where's firing right nowToday's best waves worldwide, scored live
Free Strike Report

Know when Australia is about to fire

Get the best strike windows in Australia — and worldwide — in your inbox every Monday & Thursday. Live Strike Scores, the swell behind them, zero fluff.

Free forever. Two emails a week. Unsubscribe anytime.

For real surf travel

Get the full Ballina South Wall trip window

Pro unlocks the 10-day forecast window, unlimited alerts, and custom spot tracking that help turn a good-looking surf report into a better travel decision.

10-day window

See the trip window before flights get expensive.

Unlimited alerts

Let the app watch your score threshold for you.

Custom spots

Track the breaks that actually matter to your travel plans.

Swell Requirements

Optimal direction
SE (135°)
Direction range
100° - 170°
Size range
0.5m - 1.8m
Ideal size
1.4m
Height multiplier
0.92×
Ideal period
11s+

Wind Requirements

Optimal direction
W (275°)
Offshore range
229° - 329°

Tide Requirements

Optimal tide
all

Water temp

21°C

Wetsuit

Springsuit / 2mm

Difficulty

5/10

Crowd level

4/10

Access: Access from the Richmond River south wall. Carpark nearby.

Frequently Asked Questions

What tide is best at Ballina South Wall?

Ballina South Wall handles all stages of the tide, so time your session around the wind instead. The live chart above shows the next few days.

What wind direction is offshore at Ballina South Wall?

Offshore wind at Ballina South Wall blows from the W (275°). Anything in the 229° to 329° range grooms the faces; outside it, expect chop or bumpy conditions.

What swell size and direction work best at Ballina South Wall?

Ballina South Wall wants SE swell (100° to 170°) between 0.5m and 1.8m, with a period of 11s or more for quality waves.

When is the best time of year to surf Ballina South Wall?

The main season at Ballina South Wall is Jun-Aug. A secondary window runs May, Sep. Winter SE groundswell. River mouth sand setup.

How do I get to Ballina South Wall?

Fly into BNK, then allow about 15 minutes by road. Access from the Richmond River south wall. Carpark nearby.

What kind of wave is Ballina South Wall?

Ballina South Wall is a beach break, a left-hander. Difficulty is rated 5/10.

Best Season

Peak: Jun-Aug

Secondary: May, Sep

Winter SE groundswell. River mouth sand setup.

Getting There

Airport
BNK
Drive time
15 min
Data quality
verified

Strike Log

Community Discussion