Anawhata Road (Oaonui) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the cards for us at this spot.

We're looking at a solid run of surf, but it's one for the crew who know what they're doing. The pick of the whole 16-day window, and the one that gets my blood pumping, is the Monday morning, July 27th session at Anawhata Road (Oaonui). We’ve got a good 7ft of swell rolling in from the W, with a long 13-second period. The energy is serious – you can feel it in the water (1611). The wind is glassy, just a light 3 mph from the E, so the surface is going to be like a mirror. This is excellent surf for experienced surfers, pure and simple. The water temp is about average for this time of year, so nothing unusual there.

Now, the afternoon of that same day gets messy. The wind swings to the SSE and picks up to 12 mph, turning it cross-on and choppy. The swell drops a touch to 7ft, but the quality tanks. Tuesday morning, July 28th, is a better bet again. The swell is 5ft from the WSW, period drops to 11 seconds, but the wind is a light E at 6 mph, giving us a clean face. The energy is moderate (555). It’s a good option, but not the standout.

Wednesday, July 29th, through to the end of the month is a bit of a write-off. The wind gets strong and inconsistent, and by Friday, July 31st, we’re looking at a dangerous 13ft of stormy W swell with a short 9-second period and 19 mph cross-on winds. This is a serious step up, and the energy is massive (2401 & 1884), but the conditions are poor. You’d be a fool to paddle out. This trend continues right through the first weekend of August, with gale-force winds on Sunday, August 2nd (40 mph!). That’s not surfing, that’s survival.

The next real window of opportunity opens up on Tuesday morning, August 4th. This is another standout. We get a 5ft swell from the WSW, but the period stretches out to a very long 16 seconds. The wind is a light ESE at 3 mph, making it clean. The energy is strong (1173). This is an excellent session for experienced surfers. The afternoon of the 4th goes glassy, which is a beautiful thing, with a 5ft, 16-second groundswell. The energy is still solid (957). This is a proper, long-period groundswell that will wrap around the reef beautifully.

The run continues through the first week of August. Wednesday, August 5th, is clean with 4ft swell. But the next big one to get excited about is Thursday morning, August 6th. We’ve got a 10ft swell from the NW, but the period is a short 8 seconds. The wind is offshore from the NNE at 9 mph. The energy is huge (1802), and it’s excellent for experienced surfers. That short period will make it a bit punchy and bowling on the reef, so it’s not for the faint-hearted.

The last few days of the window, from the 7th to the 11th of August, wind down. The swell drops, but there are some clean, glassy mornings. The Sunday morning, August 9th, is worth a mention for the patient surfer. A small 3ft swell, but with a very long 18-second period from the WSW, and light offshore winds (NE, 6 mph). The energy is strong for the size (1051), and it’s clean. It’s the kind of day you can get a long, drawn-out ride.

To sum it up: the absolute best of the best is Monday morning, July 27th, for the glassy, solid swell. The second standout is Tuesday morning, August 4th, for the long-period groundswell in clean conditions. The rest of the time, it’s either too windy, too big, or just average. Keep your eyes on those two sessions.

Rusty.

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