Piha-The Bar Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here, checking the surf outlook for the next couple of weeks. We’ve got a solid run of waves coming through, with a standout period that’s got me stoked. The water is sitting at 57°F at the start, which is about 1°F cooler than average for this time of year – nothing drastic, just a bit of a chill.

The first few days, starting Thursday 6 August, kick off with a clean 4ft SW swell at Piha-The-Bar, with a 12-second period and a moderate combined energy of (494). The wind is a cross-off from the south at 9 mph, and it’s feeling good. Then Friday morning 7 August turns it up a notch: glassy conditions, no wind, and a cleaner 3ft SW groundswell (12 seconds, 203 energy). That’s your first real standout – a proper glassy morning, small but perfect shapes. The afternoon gets a bit messy with a light cross-on, so hit it early.

By Saturday 8 August and Sunday 9 August, the quality drops. Saturday is cross-on with small, weak swell (2ft to 1ft), and Sunday brings a lumpy 8ft NW swell with a short 10-second period and strong energy (3106), but it’s choppy with a moderate cross-on breeze. Not worth paddling out for.

Now, here’s the real highlight. Monday 10 August delivers an absolute gem. The morning is glassy, with a 5ft WSW groundswell at 13 seconds and a solid energy (1385). The wind is a light SE offshore – glassy clean. The afternoon sees a 5ft WSW swell, 16-second period, and a cross-off wind from the south at 6 mph. Excellent conditions for experienced surfers. This is your best session of the run.

Tuesday 11 August and Wednesday 12 August are okay but nothing special – clean but marginal, with smaller swells around 3ft to 4ft, and onshore winds creeping in. Wednesday afternoon gets a bit bigger, 7ft W swell at 15 seconds (2266 energy), but the wind is onshore, so it’s lumpy.

Thursday 13 August and Friday 14 August see size pick up, but wind and rain mess with it. Thursday morning has a 10ft W swell at 13 seconds (2731 energy) with a light cross-shore, but it’s not clean. Friday gets blown out with 16–19 mph cross-shore winds and rain. Skip it.

The weekend of 15–16 August is a write-off for paddle surfing. Saturday sees 16ft to 15ft W swell with fresh onshore winds (22 mph) and heavy rain – that’s kite-surfing territory, not for a standard board. Sunday 16 August has a massive 25ft WSW swell at 14 seconds (36174 energy) with light offshore wind, but it’s far too big for this break. Only for the absolute experts with a death wish.

The run from Monday 17 August to Thursday 20 August looks promising again. Monday morning has a 13ft WSW swell (14 seconds, 5964 energy) with a cross-off breeze from the ENE – clean but huge, only for experienced surfers. Tuesday 18 August is a standout: a 8ft WSW swell at 14 seconds (2064 energy) with a light offshore from the SE. That’s excellent, clean, and powerful. Thursday 20 August morning is another glassy gem: 6ft WSW swell, 15-second period (1506 energy), with a light ESE glass-off. Beautiful.

The final days, Friday 21 August morning, are still good: glassy, 5ft WSW swell at 13 seconds (939 energy), with a light offshore. A solid way to end the outlook.

Overall, the best on offer: Monday 10 August morning for glassy, clean 5ft SW groundswell, and Tuesday 18 August morning for a clean 8ft WSW swell. Get out there.

Rusty.

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