Kawaihae Breakwater Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking for Kawaihae Breakwater over the next couple of weeks.

First things first, the opening days are a bit of a write-off – flat and weak to start. The first decent sniff of surf doesn’t show up until Saturday morning, the 5th of September. It’s small, with a 2ft SSW swell at 12 seconds, with light offshore winds. That’s a slow start, and the water temp is sitting right on average for this time of year, nothing unusual there.

The real standout action is shaping up for Sunday the 6th and *especially* Monday the 7th. Sunday starts to build nicely – 4ft of SW groundswell (12 secs) pushing moderate energy, and the wind goes glassy. The water will be clean as a whistle. That’s a good session.

But Monday the 7th is the clear winner. The swell jumps to 6ft from the SW, with a long 14-second period, cranking the energy up. Then it gets even better into the afternoon with 7ft from the WSW, energy on the rise, and glassy conditions under a light WNW breeze. That’s excellent, powerful surf – but at 7ft, this is for experienced surfers only. The wave shape on a reef setup like this with that long period will be proper, but it’s not beginner territory. The main caveat is that long-period groundswell can make a reef break a bit more critical, so you’ll want your wits about you.

After that high point, things drop off fast. Tuesday the 8th still has some 5ft swell left, but the wind goes cross-shore from the NW, making things messy. Wednesday through the rest of the second week is a long, drawn-out fade. We’re looking at ankle-to-knee-high dribble from the SW with tiny wave energy. The wind stays clean or offshore, but there’s just no power. This break is fairly consistent, but even so, it goes quiet for a solid stretch after the 9th. The 14th and 15th see a tiny pulse of very long-period swell (21-24 seconds), but at only 1ft to 2ft, it’s more of a tease than a ride. That ultra-long period will just make it close out on a reef break more than anything useful.

So, bottom line: if you want the best wave, be on the water Monday the 7th for the morning or the afternoon glass-off. Sunday the 6th is a solid runner-up. The rest of the window is pretty slim pickings.

Rusty.

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