Anawhata Road (Oaonui) Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s chew the fat on what’s in store for Anawhata Road (Oaonui). This reef break is exposed to the southwest swell, and we’re looking at a real mixed bag.

The water’s running at 57°F, with a 1°F anomaly, so it’s about what you’d expect for this time of year. Nothing wild.

The first few days are a bit of a grind. Sunday morning the 6th has some serious size – 12ft from the WSW, with a very long period of 16 seconds – the combined energy is a mammoth 5884. It’s blowing 30 km/h from the NNW, cross-off, so it should be clean, but the report says it’s marginal with questionable tide. The afternoon sees the wind jump to 40 km/h and rain move in. Not the best start.

Monday the 7th is a total loss – the wind goes cross and then strong cross-shore, and the swell direction is all over the place. The energy drops. Tuesday the 8th is small and weak, with light wind, but only 5ft to 6ft. Nothing worth the drive. Wednesday the 9th is tiny, around 3ft, and the wind gets messy later.

The standout, the one that gets your heart pumping, is Friday morning the 11th. Now, look, the forecast says “poor surf conditions” for that session, but the swell is 13ft from the WSW, with an 18-second period – that’s pure groundswell, very long period. The combined energy is a massive 10695. The wind is cross-on from the SSE at 25 km/h, which will put a chop on it. The afternoon is even worse, with onshore wind and the swell predicted to be too big for the break at 16ft. For a reef, that 13ft to 16ft range with that long period is serious stuff. It’s a beast only for the experts.

The weekend of the 12th and 13th is sheer lunacy. Swell hits 23ft to 25ft from the WSW, with energy readings over 15000 and even 20586. That’s just monstrous. The wind is onshore and strong – 50 km/h. The report says the swell is too big for this break. No one is surfing that with a paddle. This setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

The following week, from the 14th, it drops back into the 10ft to 15ft range, but the wind is consistently cross-on or onshore, keeping it lumpy and poor. There’s a glimmer on Friday morning the 18th – a 13ft swell from the W, 16-second period, and the wind is cross-off from the ESE at 25 km/h. The energy is 6933, and the report marks it as marginal but with a decent score. That could be a good session if the tide works. It’s a promising call, but it’s a week and a half away, so file it under “maybe.”

The final weekend of the 20th and 21st is blown out by near-gale force winds from the SSE. No good.

So, the best on offer is either the massive, expert-only groundswell on the 11th if you’re a gun and can handle the wind, or the cleaner, still big window on the morning of the 18th. For the average surfer, the 18th is your best bet – but it’s a long way off. The rest of the period is mostly too big, too windy, or too small. Keep your wits about you.

Rusty.

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