
Surf Forecasts:
Lake Ferry surf forecast from 26 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 1 Aug, 3AM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 8s period, SSW swell with cross-onshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 1 Aug, 9AM (local time) - 21ft (6.5m), 12s period, SSW swell with 12,201 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 27 Jul, 6PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 13s period with ESE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Lake Ferry this week:
The surf forecast for Lake Ferry over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Jul 27) at 6PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 13s period with a secondary swell of 0.9m and 7s. Another secondary swell of 0.6m and 7s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Lake Ferry in the next 16 days are 6.5m 12s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 01) at 9AM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.7m 6s period and expected on Thursday (Jul 30) at 6AM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 6PM (Mon 27th Jul) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 3AM (Sat 1st Aug) | 13ft (4.0m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 9AM (Sat 1st Aug) | 21ft (6.5m) 12s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Lake Ferry over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what Lake Ferry (Lake-Ferry) has cooking for us over the next couple of weeks. We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but things get interesting if you’re patient and know where to sit.
The first few days are pretty ordinary. Monday the 27th is a write-off with light onshore breeze and messy little wind swell. Tuesday the 28th is where we see the first real glimmer. Morning brings clean lines with a NNE offshore breeze and a clean 3 ft swell from the SE, with a moderate energy reading of 306. It’s not big, but it’ll be tidy. The real highlight of that day is Tuesday afternoon when the wind drops to glassy calm and the swell bumps up to 3 ft from the ESE with a nice 13-second period. That’s a clean, user-friendly wave for the sandbar.
We get a small window Wednesday morning the 29th with a light offshore and 2 ft surf, but it’s pretty weak. Then things go quiet again. Thursday the 30th through Friday the 31st are blown out with fresh cross-offshore winds and tiny, gutless waves. Then comes the first weekend of August – and it gets gnarly.
Saturday August 1st and Sunday August 2nd see a massive spike in energy – we’re talking over 12,000 combined energy on Saturday, with 21 ft swell from the SSW and 18-25 mph onshore winds. That’s a full-on storm surge. The waves will be huge, the wind will be ripping, and it’s going to be a washing machine. This is not for beginners – honestly, it’s foul for paddle surfing. If you’ve got a kite and know what you’re doing, that setup might look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.
That big swell slowly fades through Monday and Tuesday of the following week. By Tuesday August 4th, the morning session is the one to circle. You’ve got a 6 ft SSE groundswell (13-second period) with a light offshore breeze from the NNW. Clean, solid, and wave energy at 960 – it’s in the moderate range. That’s a proper sandbar session for the experienced crew.
The second half of that week into the weekend of August 7th-8th is where we see the real standout. Friday August 7th afternoon: 7 ft S swell with a clean offshore wind from the E, and wave energy at 1189. That’s moderate to strong. The following morning, Saturday August 8th, brings a 6 ft S groundswell with a very long 16-second period, combined with a light NE offshore. That combination screams quality, but keep in mind that kind of period works best on a point or reef – at a sandbar it might break a little straight. Still, it’s clean and powerful. That Saturday morning is likely your best bet for a proper session if you’ve got some experience under your belt.
Around Sunday August 9th we get a drop in size to 5 ft with glassy conditions – that’s a chill morning for the intermediate crowd. And then into Monday August 10th, we see another solid option: morning brings a 4 ft SSW swell with a long 15-second period and a clean offshore from the NNE. That’s another high-quality window, but it’s getting close to the two-week mark, so treat it as promising but not locked in.
After that, the run fades into weak, windblown junk through Tuesday the 11th and beyond.
Overall, don’t expect much this week. Tuesday the 28th afternoon is your early winner if you just want a glassy small-wave session. The real standout is Saturday August 8th morning – that’s the one to plan around if you can wait.
Keep an eye on the water temp too – it’s sitting around 53°F, which is about 2° cooler than average for this time of year. That’s not a huge anomaly, but it’s noticeable. Suit up warm.
Stay stoked,
Rusty
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 11°C on Tue afternoon, min 4°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 30mm), heaviest during Fri night. Very mild (max 12°C on Thu morning, min 5°C on Sat night). Mainly fresh winds. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Monday 27 | Tuesday 28 | Wednesday 29 | Thursday 30 | Friday 31 | Saturday 1 | Sunday 2 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SSW 12 | SE 12 | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | ESE 12 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SE 15 | SSW 5 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 12 | S 11 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
138 | 143 | 156 | 223 | 206 | 98 | 113 | 86 | 174 | 113 | 102 | 67 | 28 | 37 | 222 | 12201 | 8509 | 5198 | 5572 | 9018 | 3668 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | glassy | off | glassy | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | on | on | on | on | on | on |
High Tide | 3:14PM1.21m | 3:33AM1.09m | 3:58PM1.22m | 4:17AM1.08m | 4:43PM1.22m | 5:02AM1.08m | 5:28PM1.21m | 5:47AM1.07m | 6:13PM1.20m | 6:33AM1.07m | 6:59PM1.19m | 7:19AM1.08m | 7:44PM1.18m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 9:34PM0.26m | 9:39AM0.23m | 10:20PM0.26m | 10:24AM0.22m | 11:06PM0.25m | 11:10AM0.21m | 11:52PM0.24m | 11:57AM0.21m | 00:38AM0.23m | 12:44PM0.20m | 1:23AM0.22m | 1:31PM0.20m | 2:07AM0.21m | ||||||||
7:31 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:26 | — | — | 7:26 | — | — | |
— | 5:19 | — | — | 5:20 | — | — | 5:21 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:23 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | 9 | 7 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
Temp °C | 9 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Feels °C | 5 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | -1 | -2 | -3 | -3 | -4 | -2 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SSW 12 | SE 12 | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | ESE 12 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SE 18 | SE 16 | SE 15 | SE 14 | SE 13 | — | SSE 14 |
130 | 143 | 156 | 223 | 206 | 98 | 113 | 86 | 174 | 113 | 102 | 67 | 28 | 25 | 49 | 90 | 77 | 53 | 111 | — | 854 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 7 | SSE 7 | ESE 13 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 10 | SSW 14 | ESE 12 | ESE 12 | ESE 11 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | SE 15 | SE 14 | E 11 | E 10 | E 10 | — | — | — |
41 | 36 | 99 | 83 | 85 | 57 | 20 | 40 | 82 | 55 | 25 | 23 | 11 | 37 | 32 | 38 | 19 | 8 | — | — | — | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 12 | ESE 12 | SSE 7 | — | — | SE 8 | S 16 | SSW 9 | ENE 5 | — | NE 4 | SE 12 | SSW 14 | E 10 | E 11 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
52 | 89 | 25 | — | — | 23 | 5 | 8 | 2 | — | 1 | 6 | 21 | 9 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 7 | — | — | — | — | — | NNW 3 | NW 5 | NW 5 | NW 6 | NW 5 | NNW 5 | NW 5 | NW 5 | SSW 5 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 12 | S 11 |
138 | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | 49 | 73 | 185 | 106 | 106 | 90 | 92 | 222 | 12201 | 8509 | 5198 | 5572 | 9018 | 3668 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 34 | 34 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 27 | 27 | 91 | 34 | 34 | 130 | 140 | 91 | 140 | 140 | 91 | 224 | 227 | 224 |
Best forecast wave conditions in The Wairarapa | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Lake Ferry Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Lake Ferry provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Lake Ferry can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Lake Ferry 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 (Lake Ferry) 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 Lake Ferry 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.
Lake Ferry is 28 km (17 miles) from Lower Hutt. If you plan a holiday in The Wairarapa, look for hotels and other accommodation in Lower Hutt. Lower Hutt has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.










