Piha-The Bar Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get into it. Rusty here, checking in on the Piha-The-Bar outlook.

So, we’ve got a bit of a mixed bag coming up. The first thing to say is, don’t get your hopes up for the first few days. The best window is actually a bit further out, so you’ll need to be patient.

The first decent session to look at is Wednesday, July 29th morning. The swell is coming in at 5 ft from the WSW (11 seconds), with a clean 6 mph cross-offshore breeze from the ENE. The water temp is sitting around 58°, which is pretty much normal for this time of year. The combined energy is moderate (481). It’s a solid start, but not a standout.

Thursday morning, July 30th, sees a bigger 7 ft swell from the WSW, but the period is a long 14 seconds. The wind is a light cross-on from the north, which will put a bit of texture on the face. The energy jumps up to 1446. It’s not perfect, but it’s surfable. The afternoon is similar, but the wind swings NW and goes onshore, making it messy.

Friday, July 31st, is a write-off. Strong winds from the west at 18-22 mph, rain, and a lumpy, cross-onshore mess. The swell is big (8 ft to 10 ft), but the quality is poor. Kite surfers might be interested, but for paddle surfing, give it a miss.

Saturday, August 1st, the swell is huge – 15 ft to 16 ft from the WSW. The energy readings are massive (8155-9051). That’s way too big for this break. It’s expert-only territory, and even then, the wind is making it a choppy, cross-shore cleanup. Not a day for the average surfer.

Sunday, August 2nd, things calm down. Morning has a 8 ft SW swell with a clean 12 mph cross-offshore breeze from the south. The energy is strong (1737). The afternoon drops to 7 ft, still clean. This is a good, solid day. It’s the pick of the early window.

The real standout is Monday, August 3rd, morning. The swell is 4 ft from the WSW, but the period hits a stunning 20 seconds. That’s a very long period groundswell, which means long, powerful, and well-shaped waves. The wind is a light cross-offshore from the SSW, making it glassy clean. The energy is 2103. For a point break like Piha, this is the kind of day you wait for. The afternoon gets a bit choppy, but the morning window is the best on offer in the entire forecast.

The following week has some promising days. Saturday, August 8th, morning has a 3 ft swell with a 21-second period and a clean offshore wind. Sunday, August 9th has a solid 10 ft SSW swell, but the period is a short 8 seconds, so it’ll be a bit fat and straight. Wednesday, August 12th, morning is another cracking long-period day: 4 ft from the SW with a 22-second period, light offshore winds. That’s clean, lined-up waves.

Overall, there’s a gap of poor surf from July 31st to August 1st, but after that, it picks up. The Monday morning, August 3rd session is the one to circle. Don’t sleep on Saturday, August 8th either.

Keep the wax warm, boys.

Rusty.

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