Pohoiki Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’m looking at what’s on offer for the Pohoiki stretch over the next couple of weeks. Honestly, I’m a bit bummed to start – the immediate outlook is a long, flat spell of frustrating conditions. We’re looking at a solid 10-day gap, running from the end of July, right through the first week of August, with nothing I’d want to paddle out for. The wind is stubborn out of the northeast, mostly cross-onshore, chopping up the surface, and the swell is a mix of short-period, low-energy windslop. The combined energy sits in the hundreds (831–923), which is weak to moderate, but it’s all messy.

The water temperature is about average for the time of year, so no weirdness there, but it’s not doing you any favours when the waves are this ugly.

The first real glimmer comes on the morning of Tuesday, August 4th. The northeast swell drops to 5 ft, swinging east-northeast, and the period stretches to a nice long 11 seconds. That’s a groundswell, so it’ll have more push and shape, but at a beachbreak like Pohoiki, that long period can make the waves dump a bit straight. The wind is light out of the east at 3 mph, barely a cross-on, so the surface might be a little rippled but not blown out. Combined energy is moderate (518). It’s still a marginal call, but it’s the best we’ve seen in days.

The next potential bright spot is a bigger pulse on the morning of Sunday, August 9th. Swell bumps up to 7 ft from the east, with an 8-second period. That’s a short-period swell, so it’ll be a bit lumpy, but the combined energy jumps to a strong 1134. That’s a lot of water moving around. The wind is a gentle cross-on from the northeast at 9 mph, so it’s not clean, but it’s not howling. This is size for Pohoiki – over 5 ft, so it’s getting into intermediate territory, but the wind is the spoiler here.

If you’re looking for the standout, and this is a long-range call, keep an eye on August 14th and 15th. A very long-period, 18-second south swell pushes in. The heights are small – 2 ft to 4 ft – but that’s a deep-water groundswell. The problem is the wind is still onshore or cross-onshore from the east and southeast, and the combined energy is moderate to strong (681–1026). The long period means those waves will have real grunt, but they’ll be quick and dumpy at Pohoiki. It’s a promise of something better, but it’s a long way off and the wind needs to clean up.

For the whole 16-day window, there’s no single day I’d mark as a true standout. The Tuesday morning the 4th and the Sunday morning the 9th are the closest to a call, but they’re both marginal. The long-period south swell late in the second week is the most interesting from a pure wave-quality standpoint, but it’s risky with the wind.

Alright, that’s the way I see it.

Rusty

Read more