Honokohau Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, I'm Rusty. Let's talk about Honokohau.

Honokohau is a reef and point break that's pretty consistent. The water temperature is sitting at 81°, which is about average for the time of year, so no surprises there.

Alright, the outlook for the next couple of weeks is a bit of a struggle. We’ve got some swell on the way, but the wind is locked in from the east-northeast nearly the whole time, and it's blowing cross-shore. That’s going to make things lumpy and messy, not the clean lined-up waves we’re after. The first week is pretty much a write-off.

From Sunday the 13th through to the end of the week, we’re looking at poor surf conditions. The swell is there, starting around 3ft on Sunday morning from the NNE with a period of 9 seconds, but that cross-shore breeze has it all chopped up. The combined wave energy is weak to moderate (209). It doesn’t get any better through Monday, with the swell dropping a touch and the wind picking up. Tuesday sees a small, long-period swell (2ft from the E at 12 seconds) but the energy is still low (103) and the wind is ruining it.

We get a spike in size around Wednesday the 16th, with the swell jumping to 5ft from the ENE with a 10-second period. The combined energy bumps up to a moderate level (464), but the wind is a fresh 19 mph cross-shore, making for lumpy conditions. That size and energy continues to build, but the wind doesn't let up. By Thursday the 17th, we’re into 8ft swell from the ENE, with an 8-second period and a massive jump in energy to 854. This is proper size, but for experts only. The problem remains the strong cross-shore wind from the ENE, making it a messy, lumpy mess. Not good for surfing.

Friday the 18th and Saturday the 19th are more of the same: 8ft and 7ft swell from the E, with the same relentless cross-shore wind and high energy (754 and 563). This is borderline more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

We finally get a slight change on Sunday the 20th. The morning session sees the wind swing to an east cross-offshore direction at 19 mph, which gives us cleaner conditions. The swell is still a solid 7ft from the E with an 8-second period and moderate energy (525). This is the best looking window in the whole run. The wind isn't fully offshore, but cross-off is a big step up from the constant cross-shore chop. It's still big and punchy, so this is for experienced surfers only.

After that, it's back to the same story. The wind returns to cross-shore and the conditions turn lumpy again for the rest of the run. The swell stays up, ranging from 6ft to 10ft, with energy values from 456 to a massive 1918 on Tuesday the 22nd. That Tuesday afternoon sees a 8ft swell from the E with a very long period of 12 seconds. That kind of long-period groundswell can be tricky on a point break, but it can also produce some beautiful, powerful lines if the wind plays ball. Unfortunately, the cross-shore wind will likely ruin it.

There's a brief moment on Saturday the 26th and Sunday the 27th where we see some east cross-offshore wind again, but the swell has dropped to 6ft with a short 7-second period and low energy (455). It’s cleaner, but the waves will be weaker and less organised.

To be honest, there are no true standouts in this 16-day window. The constant wind from the east-northeast is the main culprit. If you're desperate, the cleanest conditions will be on the morning of Sunday the 20th and possibly the morning of Saturday the 26th. The Sunday the 20th window has the better size and energy, but it's still big. It’s a tough run for Honokohau.

Rusty.

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