Pohoiki Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's take a look at what's on the menu for Pohoiki over the next couple of weeks.

We've got a bit of a mixed bag coming up. The water’s sitting at a balmy 81°, which is about 1° warmer than usual for this time of year – nothing crazy, just a touch on the comfortable side.

The next few days are pretty average, not much to write home about. Tuesday morning sees a small 3ft easterly swell with a short 8-second period, and the wind is cross-off from the north at 12 mph, so it’s clean but the energy is weak (341). It’s more of a beginner paddle than a standout session. By Tuesday afternoon and into Wednesday, the wind swings cross-shore or onshore, and the conditions get messy. The swell bumps up a bit to around 4-5ft, but it's poor quality with a cross-chop.

Thursday and Friday are still nothing special. The swell drops back, the wind stays tricky, and we see a bit more onshore influence. The energy stays low, and the forecast keeps calling it poor. Saturday the 22nd sees a bigger pulse of swell, 6-7ft from the east with a 9-second period, pushing the energy up to moderate (631-858). But the wind is cross-onshore at 12-16 mph, making it choppy and messy. Not the one to plan a session around.

Sunday the 23rd brings a larger 8ft swell from the ESE (1335 energy), but again, the wind is cross-onshore from the NE at 12 mph. It’s borderline for beginners at that size and the surface won't be pretty. That trend continues through the next week – solid swell heights, 6ft to 8ft, but the wind stays stubbornly cross-onshore or onshore, meaning it stays choppy and messy.

The first real standout in the whole window shows up on Saturday the 29th of August. We see a 10ft easterly swell with a 9-second period and the energy jumps up to a strong 1976. The wind backs off to a gentle breeze from the NE, turning cross-shore and giving us just a slight chop. It’s still a bit on the big side for beginners, but for the experienced crew, that afternoon window offers the cleanest conditions of the whole period.

Then on Tuesday the 1st of September, we get some northerly winds at 19 mph, but they’re cross-off, making things clean again. The swell holds at 7ft from the east, period stretching to 10 seconds, with solid energy (1139-1237). It’s a surfable, punchy option for the confident intermediate and above. On Wednesday the 2nd, it gets even better – the period jumps to 11 seconds, giving it that groundswell feel, with clean glassy conditions under light NNW winds. The energy is hefty at 1497. This is a long-period easterly swell at a reef break, which often means longer, more shaped waves and straighter lines – could be a gem for the pointbreak, but might wall up at the beach.

So, truth be told, there’s a long run of dodgy wind and messy surf before things clean up. The best bet is Saturday afternoon August 29th for that big, clean swell, and then the two days around September 1st and 2nd for cleaner, more forgiving conditions with that longer-period groundswell.

Rusty.

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