Porpoise Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Catlins, New Zealand)

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Photo by: Deow Owen

Porpoise Bay Surf Guide

Porpoise Bay in Catlins is an exposed beach and reef break that has fairly consistent surf and can work at any time of the year. Works best in offshore winds from the north with some shelter here from southwest winds. Tends to receive a mix of groundswells and windswells and the ideal swell direction is from the south. The beach break provides left and right handers as well as left and right hand reef breaks.. Even when there are waves, it's not likley to be crowded. Beware of rips, rocks and sharks.

Porpoise Bay Spot Info

Type:	Rating:
Beach and reef	3.0
Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
fairly consistent	13.5°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Porpoise Bay:

The best conditions reported for surf at Porpoise Bay occur when a South swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the North.

Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

12 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Porpoise Bay (for consistent clean waves)?

julyBest Season: autumn

The best time of year for surfing Porpoise Bay with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Autumn and most often the month of July. Clean surfable waves are typically found 38% of the time in July while 53% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 9% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

38%

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

53%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Porpoise Bay Location Map

Interactive Porpoise Bay surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Porpoise Bay is Invercargill Airport (IVC) in New Zealand, 63 km (39 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Porpoise Bay is Dunedin Airport (DUD), also in New Zealand, 120 km (75 miles) away.

Break

Live Wave Height (m)

Live Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Porpoise Bay Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

7 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Saturday, 21 May 2022, 11:08 Local Time

m, °C	Saturday 21
ft, °F	9AM	12PM	3PM	6PM
Wave (m)	SW	SW	SSW	SSW
Period (s)	12	13	13	14
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross	cross	cross- on	cross- on

What does Porpoise Bay look like?

Latest photos from Porpoise Bay. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: Chandini Credit: John Mccormack Credit: Peter Crowley Credit: Deow Owen Credit: Deow Owen

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Tides at Porpoise Bay

Current tide and informaton

For Dinner Plates, 3 km from Porpoise Bay.

Next High Water: 07:02pm | 2.19m

Next Low Water: 12:39pm | 0.19m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Porpoise Bay Sea Temperature

The water temperature (13.5 °C) at Porpoise Bay is not too cold today but the windchill (3.0 °C) will make the air temperature seem much colder than the sea and it is forecast to be cloudy too so a chilly prospect. You'll need at least a hooded spring wetsuit to keep surf at Porpoise Bay today, maybe neoprene boots and gloves too.

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit, a neoprene hood, gloves and boots.