Gerickes back reef
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
33Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Fri 6: 6 ft swell at 7 s
Tue 3 · 23 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 279kJ
- Wind
- E 6 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Wed 4 · 34 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 385kJ
- Wind
- NE 2 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Thu 5 · 22 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 239kJ
- Wind
- SW 6 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Fri 6 · 47 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft7 shollow
- Energy
- 375kJ
- Wind
- WSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Sat 7 · 24 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 784kJ
- Wind
- SW 13 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Sun 8 · 41 out of 100
- Swell
- 9 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 1,091kJ
- Wind
- NNW 5 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Mon 9 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 168kJ
- Wind
- E 8 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 245, fair
- Tue 323, too small
- Wed 434, too small
- Thu 522, too small
- Fri 647, fair
- Sat 724, poor
- Sun 841, poor
- Mon 919, too small
- Tue 106, too small
- Wed 1136, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces Stakes swell from the S
- Offshore: Nwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 19 °C2 mm shorty
- Best May–Jun1 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 45, fair | 6 ft8 shollow7 ft at break (est.) | 426kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots | 18°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 23, too small | 5 ft9 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 279kJ | wind from the east, 6 knots | 19°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 34, too small | 5 ft9 shollow7 ft at break (est.) | 385kJ | offshorewind from the north-east, 2 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 22, too small | 4 ft9 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 239kJ | wind from the south-west, 6 knots | 20°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 47, fair | 6 ft7 shollow7 ft at break (est.) | 375kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots | 19°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 24, poor | 8 ft8 smushy9 ft at break (est.) | 784kJ | wind from the south-west, 13 knots | 17°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 41, poor | 9 ft9 shollow10 ft at break (est.) | 1,091kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 5 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 19, too small | 4 ft8 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 168kJ | wind from the east, 8 knots | 20°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 6, too small | 4 ft7 smushy1 ft at break (est.) | 157kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 12 knots | 19°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 36, too small | 4 ft9 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 278kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 1 knot | 18°C |
Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More
Tide
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:57 −0.4 mHigh 09:41 +0.4 mLow 16:20 −0.3 mHigh 22:27 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:47 −0.4 mHigh 11:16 +0.5 mLow 17:56 −0.4 mHigh 23:55 +0.4 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 06:05 −0.5 mHigh 12:23 +0.7 mLow 18:55 −0.6 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
best May–Jun
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug0of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep0of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
- Dec0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot and its town
Gerickes back reef on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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More surf near here
5 places
- Gerickes Point (Left) 0.5 km away
- Gerickes (Scar reef) 0.8 km away
- Sandpoep Shorey 1.8 km away
- Vallies Doom Shorey 4 km away
- A Frames 8.9 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Gerickes back reef
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces S (192°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (12°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 12). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 16°C in July, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 21°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually May and June, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Sedgefield, 4.7 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots.
Water about 19°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,310–US$2,570 each
about US$1,310–US$2,570 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to GRJ, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and CPT, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$871–US$1,810 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$67–US$114 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$161–US$275 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$147–US$268 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$67–US$107 |
| Total | about US$1,310–US$2,570 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: 3 towns
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 10 min by car · 40 places to stay
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Sedgefield its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Wilderness on Booking.com
about 30 min by car · 68 places to stay
- Beds in Brenton on Sea on Booking.com
about 45 min by car · 25 places to stay
About US$60 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 30h 30m
About 30h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → GRJ, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), then 1h by road
Flights MDW → GRJ on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.