Rock Point/Pohakuloa Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – this 16-day window for Rock Point/Pohakuloa is a tough one. We’re looking at a long stretch of pretty average to poor conditions, with a lot of cross-shore wind chopping things up. There’s a real gap of surfable quality here, so don’t expect to be scoring any gems for a while.

The water's sitting at a pretty normal 80°F for this time of year, so no drama there. But the story is the wind. For the first week and a half, from Tuesday the 8th right through to the middle of the month, it’s a constant battle with moderate to fresh cross-shore breezes. The swell is there – bumping around 4ft to 7ft from the ENE a lot of the time – but the wind just ruins it. The wave energy is moderate, usually in the 300-500 range, but it’s all messy, chopped-out lines. Not something you’d paddle out for.

We finally get a bit of a glimmer late on. Thursday the 17th afternoon sees a score of 1, with swell hitting 8ft from the E and a period of 8 seconds. The energy is strong, hitting 775, but it’s still cross-shore chop. That’s a lot of water moving around, and it’s going to be a bumpy, lumpy ride. This is pushing into expert territory at that size, especially with the wind.

Then the real standout of the whole outlook, if you can call it that, comes on Saturday the 19th afternoon. The wind finally swings around to a cross-offshore from the NE, and the forecast says it’s clean. The swell is a solid 6ft from the E, with moderate energy (536). For a break that’s often crowded and inconsistent, this is rare. The wind is the key here – that clean, cross-offshore flow will make Rock Point/Pohakuloa look like a different wave. The swell direction is close to optimum (NE), and the period is a short 8 seconds, so it’ll be a bit walled up, but the clean surface will be the main event. It’s the best on offer, but it’s still a marginal call.

After that, we’re back into the wind and the chop right through to the end of the forecast. Monday the 22nd and Tuesday the 23rd get small and weak, with energy dropping below 100, and the wind is howling. Not worth a second look.

So, to be honest, the only real date to circle is the afternoon of Saturday the 19th. And even then, keep your expectations in check. The rest of the 16 days is a write-off for a quality paddle session. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing for most of it.

Rusty.

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