Cobden Breakwater Surf Break

Lat Long: 42.44° S 171.20° E

Issued: 5 am 03 Jul 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Cobden Breakwater sea temperature is
13.5° C

Slightly warmer than usual

Cobden Breakwater surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Cobden Breakwater surf forecast from 3 Jul 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Saturday 4 Jul, 12PM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 10s period, NW swell with cross-offshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Monday 6 Jul, 9AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 16s period, W swell with 3,906 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 3 Jul, 3PM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 10s period with WNW swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Cobden Breakwater this week:

The surf forecast for Cobden Breakwater over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Jul 03) at 3PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.3m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 15s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Cobden Breakwater in the next 16 days are 3.0m 16s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Jul 06) at 9AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 3.5m 9s period and expected on Saturday (Jul 04) at 3PM.

Wave TypeTime (NZST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 3PM (Fri 3rd Jul)4.5ft (1.3m) 10s
Best Surf12PM (Sat 4th Jul)13ft (4.0m) 10s
Most Powerful 9AM (Mon 6th Jul)10ft (3.0m) 16s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Cobden Breakwater over the next 16 days.


Updates in  hr  min  s Forecast update imminent

G’day, Rusty here with a look at Cobden Breakwater.

Right now, it’s flat – nothing doing. The first chance to paddle out comes Friday morning, 3rd July. Small but clean: a 3ft swell from the WNW with an easterly offshore breeze. Water temp is 56°, which is about normal for this time of year. Combined swell energy is weak at 202, but it’s rideable for an intermediate.

Friday afternoon bumps to 4ft, still WNW, with a light northeasterly breeze – stays clean. Fun little session.

Saturday 4th – the swell jumps to 8ft in the morning, then 12ft in the afternoon, both from NW/NW. Wind howls from the NNE at 15–22 mph, cross-off. Energy shoots up to 1684 then 2840 – strong. But it’s too big for this break – expert-only, and messy with that wind. Not for most of us.

Sunday 5th morning is a washout with onshore SW wind and 6ft surf. But Sunday afternoon – glassy, 3–5 mph SE breeze, and a solid 10ft WNW swell. Energy is 1846. That’s the standout – clean, powerful, for experienced surfers only. Best session of the whole two weeks.

Monday 6th still has size – 10ft morning, 8ft afternoon – but cross-shore wind and very long period (15–16 seconds) make it tricky at a breakwater. Energy peaks at 3906 – massive. Experts only.

From Tuesday 7th through to Saturday 18th July, it’s mostly small and clean but marginal. A nice little window from Thursday 9th afternoon to Saturday 11th – swell around 3–4ft, very long period (15–16 seconds), light to glassy winds. Saturday 11th afternoon is dead calm with zero wind and a 3ft WSW swell – perfect for a cruisy paddle.

Thursday 16th afternoon shows promise – 5ft from the WSW, 17-second period, clean, with energy at 1493. Rated excellent for experienced surfers. That’s the second standout, but it’s over a week away – worth watching.

Best bet: Sunday 5th afternoon for the experienced crew. Otherwise, plenty of small, clean days for a regular intermediate session.

Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Heavy rain (total 56mm), heaviest during Sat afternoon. Very mild (max 13°C on Sat morning, min 5°C on Sun night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the NNE on Sat afternoon, calm by Sun morning).

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Mostly dry. Very mild (max 10°C on Mon morning, min 2°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light.

Friday
3
Saturday
4
Sunday
5
Monday
6
Tuesday
7
Wednesday
8
Thursday
9
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
2
2
4
2
!
3
0
4
4
4
2
4
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
3
2
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.9
WNW
11
1.3
WNW
10
2
WNW
12
2.5
WNW
11
3.5
NW
11
2.2
NNW
10
1.7
W
11
3
WNW
10
3
W
13
3
W
16
2.5
W
15
2.1
WSW
15
1.5
WSW
14
1.4
WSW
13
1.2
WSW
12
0.9
WSW
12
0.9
WSW
11
0.8
WSW
16
1.1
WSW
15
1.1
WSW
15
0.8
WSW
18
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
202
289
1125
1647
2717
919
651
1494
2920
3906
2981
2027
850
642
393
237
180
341
574
543
443
Wind (km/h)
10
E
5
NE
15
NE
25
NNE
35
NNE
10
WNW
20
SW
5
SE
10
SE
15
SE
15
SSE
15
SE
15
SSE
20
S
20
ESE
15
ESE
25
ESE
20
ESE
20
E
10
E
15
E
Wind State
off
off
off
cross-off
cross-off
cross-on
on
glassy
cross-off
cross-off
cross
cross-off
cross
cross
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
off
cross-off
High Tide
12:48PM3.10m
1:02AM3.16m
1:26PM3.05m
1:40AM3.10m
2:06PM2.98m
2:21AM3.04m
2:49PM2.91m
3:08AM2.97m
3:38PM2.85m
4:01AM2.91m
4:35PM2.81m
5:03AM2.88m
5:39PM2.81m
Low Tide
6:55PM1.00m
7:16AM0.99m
7:33PM1.00m
7:57AM0.97m
8:13PM1.01m
8:40AM0.97m
8:58PM1.04m
9:28AM0.99m
9:49PM1.07m
10:21AM1.01m
10:48PM1.10m
11:22AM1.03m
11:53PM1.09m
part cloud
cloud
light rain
light rain
heavy rain
rain showers
rain showers
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
cloud
part cloud
cloud
part cloud
part cloud
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
clear
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
8:04
8:04
8:03
8:03
8:03
8:03
8:03
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:13
5:14
5:14
5:15
5:15
5:15
5:16
 mm
3
2
20
23
8
Temp °C
10
12
12
13
12
12
9
10
7
10
10
6
8
10
6
10
10
4
8
11
5
Feels °C
7
10
9
8
5
8
7
8
3
5
5
2
3
4
1
4
4
-2
3
7
0
Swell 1
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.9
WNW
11
1.3
WNW
10
2
WNW
12
2.5
WNW
11
3.5
NW
11
2.2
NNW
10
1.7
W
11
3
WNW
10
3
W
13
3
W
16
2.5
W
15
2.1
WSW
15
1.5
WSW
14
1.4
WSW
13
1.2
WSW
12
0.9
WSW
12
0.9
WSW
11
0.8
WSW
16
1.1
WSW
15
1.1
WSW
15
1
WSW
14
Energy kJ
202
289
1125
1647
2717
880
651
1494
2920
3906
2981
2027
850
642
393
237
180
341
574
543
443
Swell 2
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.1
SW
15
0.1
SW
13
0.2
W
22
0.4
W
20
2.1
WNW
10
1.4
NW
9
0.9
W
15
0.3
WSW
18
0.5
W
18
0.7
WSW
11
0.6
W
20
0.7
WSW
19
0.8
WSW
18
Energy kJ
9
7
37
123
919
343
352
64
156
101
276
383
413
Swell 3
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.8
W
18
1.4
N
9
0.2
W
22
Energy kJ
404
318
38
Wind waves
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
2
N
7
3.5
N
9
0.6
S
3
0.4
SSE
3
0.4
SE
3
0.4
SE
3
0.4
SE
3
Energy kJ
364
1969
7
4
2
3
2
Nearest Offshore or Glassy
Rating
(10 max)
2
2
4
1
1
4
2
4
4
4
4
4
3
4
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
Distance (km)
0
0
0
156
156
85
48
0
0
0
0
0
0
85
0
0
0
7
7
0
7
Best forecast wave conditions in West Coast South Island
Rating
(10 max)
2
2
4
4
4
4
4
5
7
5
4
4
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand
Rating
(10 max)
3
3
4
2
3
4
4
4
4
5
8
9
5
4
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
Header Global
Rating
(10 max)
9
5
9
5
5
6
5
9
7
5
8
9
8
6
8
9
6
9
5
5
9
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for Cobden Breakwater:

join our community of surf reporters

FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website

The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Cobden Breakwater surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.


Information about the Cobden Breakwater Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Cobden Breakwater provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Cobden Breakwater can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Cobden Breakwater surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Cobden Breakwater) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).

Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Cobden Breakwater may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.

Cobden Breakwater is 172 km (107 miles) from the city of Christchurch. If you plan a holiday in West Coast South Island, look for hotels and other accommodation in Christchurch. Christchurch has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

Nearest locationNearest