Piha-The Bar Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day surfers, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the table for Piha over the next couple of weeks. It’s a bit of a wild ride, so hang on.

Right off the bat, we’ve got some surf on Saturday the 29th of August, but it’s not the main event. The real story this week is the massive pulse of swell that hits Sunday and Monday, but it’s a tricky one for Piha. Let’s walk through it.

Saturday 29th August – Piha-The Bar (Piha) has a small but clean start to the weekend. You’re looking at a 3.3ft swell from the WSW with a solid 13-second period, giving it some good push. The combined swell energy is moderate (577). There’s light rain and a slight cross-shore breeze, but by Saturday afternoon the wind turns glassy – glassy! That’s a major positive. Wave height drops a touch to 3ft, but it’ll be dead clean. A nice afternoon session for an advanced crew, but definitely not for beginners with the long-period groundswell; it’ll be a bit fat and walled-up at this exposed bar. Water temp is about average for this time of year.

Sunday 30th August – The swell jumps up quick. We’ve got an 8.2ft SW swell pushing through by morning, with a short 8-second period. Combined energy jumps to 1521 (moderate). The wind is a fresh 30 km/h cross-shore, creating lumpy conditions. By the afternoon, it’s 9.8ft and still messy. This is fresh-breeze cross-chop – surfable for the advanced crew only. It’s not the best quality, but there’s plenty of water moving.

Monday 31st August – Here’s the standout, but it’s a double-edged sword. The swell peaks at a massive 14.8ft from the SW, with a long 13-14 second period. Combined energy rockets to 6608 in the morning and 8530 in the afternoon – that’s strong to very strong wave energy. The wind is fresh cross-shore, so it’s lumpy, but the forecast says wind and tide are favourable. However, this swell is too big for Piha – over 8.2ft means experts only, and at 14.8ft it’s a real beast. This is a day for the absolute elite, and even then, the long period groundswell will make the bar break heavy and unpredictable. It’s the best swell of the week in terms of power, but it’s dangerous. Crowds are possible.

Tuesday 1st September – No dice. Swell stays around 16.4ft, but wind cranks up to 40-50 km/h cross-shore. Poor surf conditions, blown out. Don’t bother.

Wednesday 2nd & Thursday 3rd September – Big swell sticks around in the 8.2-11.5ft range, but it’s all cross-onshore or onshore wind from the WSW. Choppy, lumpy, poor quality. Not worth the paddle.

Friday 4th September to Sunday 6th September – Still big. 7.5ft to 13.1ft of WSW groundswell, but consistently onshore or cross-onshore winds. Poor to marginal conditions. The morning of Sunday 6th has a glimmer – 13.1ft swell with a 15-second period and light onshore wind (marginal, score 5), but it’s still too big and messy for anything fun.

Monday 7th & Tuesday 8th September – More of the same: 9.8-13.1ft, strong winds. Poor. Tuesday afternoon sees a shift – a 9.8ft swell from the W, but finally a clean cross-offshore breeze from the SSW at 15 km/h. Combined energy is 3231 (strong). The comment is “marginal” but the conditions are clean. This might be a sneaky later arvo session if you’re desperate, but the swell is still well over beginner level.

Wednesday 9th & Thursday 10th September – Another real standout pops up on Thursday the 10th afternoon. We’ve got a 14.8ft swell from the WSW, 10-second period, combined energy 3933 (strong). And the wind? Offshore from the SE at just 5 km/h – dead clean. The forecast says wind and tide are favourable, but again, the swell is predicted to be too big for Piha. This is a pure big-wave day. Only the absolute best crew should even think about it.

Friday 11th September to Sunday 13th September – The pattern fades. Still big swell (8.2-16.4ft), but winds become onshore or cross-onshore and

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