Piha-The Bar Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Righto, grab a coffee and settle in, this is Piha we're talking about. It's a bit of a mixed bag over the next couple of weeks, with some absolute monsters lurking, but you've gotta pick your moments.

The first real chance to get wet is this Saturday morning, the 29th of August. The swell is a clean 3ft from the WSW, with a lovely 13-second period – that's proper groundswell with some grunt. The real kicker is the wind: glassy, from the ENE at 3 mph. That means the lineup at Piha-The Bar will be as smooth as it gets. The water temp is sitting at 57°, which is pretty much spot on for this time of year, so nothing unusual there. The combined energy is moderate (566), and the crowds are *sometimes* a problem, so you might have to share. This is the standout for the near future.

Saturday afternoon holds up okay, but the wind swings to a light cross-off, so it'll still be clean, just not as perfect.

Now, don't get too excited about the weekend. Sunday the 30th turns ugly. The wind howls from the SW at 19-22 mph, whipping up a lumpy, cross-shore mess. The swell jumps to 8ft-10ft, and it's short-period windswell (8 seconds), so it's going to be a close-out. Forget it.

The following week is a washout for the average surfer. From Monday the 31st through to the 5th of September, the surf is massive, often over 13ft and up to 15ft, with huge combined energy readings (into the thousands). The wind is mostly cross or onshore, making it a choppy, lumpy, and dangerous mess. This is strictly for experts only, and even then, it's likely too big and blown out. The setup here looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for most of this period.

There's a glimmer of hope on Saturday the 5th of September. The swell drops to 12ft with a long 14-second period, and the wind goes light (6 mph) and cross-shore. It's still a big, powerful swell, so it's not for the faint-hearted, but it's a massive step up in quality from the days before.

The real one to circle, though, is a week on Monday, the 7th of September. The morning looks like a proper corker. The swell is a solid 8ft from the WSW, still with a long 15-second period, but the wind is a light SSE at 6 mph, blowing cross-offshore. That means the Bar will be glassy clean. The combined energy is strong (5044), and it's predicted to be exceptional for expert surfers. This is a serious standout for the second week.

After that, the swell builds again into the 20ft range by the 9th and 10th, with fresh onshore winds. That's just pure chaos again. The period on the 12th of September looks promising with a 13ft WSW swell and light cross-off winds, but it's a long way out, so keep your fingers crossed.

All in all, the best bet for a clean, surfable wave is this Saturday morning, the 29th. For the bigger, more powerful stuff, the 7th of September is the one to watch.

Rusty.

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