Arawhata Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s coming up for Arawhata. This is a reef set-up that likes a good SW swell, and we’ve got a proper run of waves on the cards, but you’re gonna have to work around the wind to find the real gems.

The first session worth paddling out for is Monday afternoon, July 20th. The swell is a clean 5ft from the WSW with a 14-second period. The wind is a cross-off ESE breeze at 9 mph, keeping things clean. The combined wave energy is moderate at 804. The water temp is sitting at 59°, which is pretty normal for this time of year. It’s a solid start, but the real standout is the next morning.

Tuesday morning, July 21st, is the pick of the first week. The wind goes glassy – a dead calm 3 mph from the east – and the swell holds at a clean 4ft from the WSW, with a 13-second period pushing through. The energy is a bit lighter at 530, but the conditions will be absolutely perfect. Expect very good surf. Get out there early, because it’s the best you’ll see for a few days.

The surf gets a bit wild from Wednesday onward. We get a nasty SW wind at 19 mph on Wednesday morning, July 22nd, with a 7ft swell, but it’s a short-period 7-second wind swell that’s all over the place. Not worth it. The swell picks up through the end of the week, but the wind stays messy with cross-off and cross-onshore directions. By the weekend of July 25th and 26th, the swell is massive (16ft on Saturday) with wild onshore winds. That’s big-wave territory, and only for the hardcore, experienced crew. The combined energy hits 7694, then 10710 – that’s powerful, dangerous stuff. The conditions are poor, so it’s a waiting game.

The second week starts to settle down a bit. Monday, July 27th, the swell drops to 10ft, but the wind is still a fresh cross-onshore. The waves are lumpy. This pattern of messy, onshore wind holds through the middle of the week.

Here’s the second standout: Thursday afternoon, July 30th. The swell builds back to 12ft from the west, with a proper 15-second period. The wind is a gentle cross-shore from the WNW at 9 mph, and the combined energy is a strong 6177. It’s still marginal due to tide, but it’s the first time in a while the wind and swell line up for a decent session. The following morning, Friday, July 31st, sees a bigger 13ft swell with a 15-second period, but the wind is a fresh cross-shore, making it lumpy. The energy is massive at 13750, but it’s a battle.

The first week of August gets messy again. We get another big pulse on Saturday, August 1st, with 18ft from the WSW and onshore wind. Poor conditions. Then Sunday, August 2nd, is more of the same with strong onshore winds.

But here’s the real long-range gem: Monday morning, August 3rd. The wind swings to a cross-off from the east at 12 mph, giving us clean conditions. The swell is still a solid 12ft from the WSW with an 11-second period, and the energy is 3248. Then Tuesday morning, August 4th, the wind goes fully offshore from the NNE at 25 mph. The swell is 12ft with a 14-second period, and the energy is 4363. That’s a strong offshore breeze, which will make for very clean, hollow waves at the reef, but it’ll be a battle to get out. Hard to paddle into, but the rewards will be there. Both of those sessions are promising, but it’s a long way out, so keep an eye on it.

So, bottom line: hit Tuesday morning, July 21st, for the cleanest, glassiest conditions. If you want bigger, more powerful swell, the Thursday, July 30th afternoon and the Monday, August 3rd and Tuesday, August 4th mornings are your targets.

Rusty.

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