Today's Punakaiki sea temperature is 14.3 °C
(Slightly warmer than usual)
| Mean: | 13.5 °C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Range: | 12.2 °C to 15.2 °C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Statistics for 21 Jun (1981–2005) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit and neoprene boots.
The Punakaiki water temperature is rather cool (14 °C) and the air temperature will feel about the same. A good quality spring wetsuit with optional neoprene boots should suffice. No need for wetsuit gloves.
 Map of current New Zealand Surface Water Temperatures (based on measurements from oceanographic satellites) |  Map of current New Zealand Sea Water Temperature Anomalies (compared with long term averages at this time of year) |
click thumbnails to expand
Below is a graph of Historical Sea Surface Temperature for Punakaiki. This has been derived from analysis of two decades of oceanographic satellite measurements of nearby open water. We have calculated the average water temperature variation around the year as well as the extremes that have been observed on each date.
All of the graphs for the surf breaks presented on Surf-Forecast.com are on the same scale to enable comparison between locations around the world.
Punakaiki sea temperatures peak in the range 16 to 20°C (61 to 68°F) on around the 8th of February and are at their lowest on about the 5th of August, in the range 12 to 14°C (54 to 57°F). The maximum Punakaiki sea temperatures in early to mid February require something like a 3/2mm fully sealed wetsuit. The lowest sea temperatures at Punakaiki at the beginning of August are ideally suited to a 4/3mm wetsuit + 3mm boots, although a 5/3mm wetsuit may be preferable for longer sessions and cold windy days.
Actual sea surface water temperatures close to shore at Punakaiki can vary by several degrees compared with these open water averages. This is especially true after heavy rain, close to river mouths or after long periods of strong offshore winds. Offshore winds cause colder deep water to replace surface water that has been warmed by the sun. Air temperature, wind-chill and sunshine should also be considered before deciding on the kind of wetsuit needed to stay warm when surfing at Punakaiki. Refer to our detailed weather forecasts for this information.
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