Rolling Stones Surf Break

Lat Long: 39.07° S 177.83° E

Issued: 11 am 07 Jul 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Rolling Stones sea temperature is
13.1° C

1.3°C colder than average for this time of year

Rolling Stones surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Rolling Stones surf forecast from 7 Jul 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Tuesday 7 Jul, 6PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 9s period, E swell with glassy winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Friday 10 Jul, 6AM (local time) - 16ft (5.0m), 11s period, S swell with 6,177 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 7 Jul, 6PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 9s period with E swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Rolling Stones this week:

The surf forecast for Rolling Stones over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Jul 07) at 6PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.8m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 10s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Rolling Stones in the next 16 days are 5.0m 11s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Jul 10) at 6AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 4s period and expected on Monday (Jul 13) at 6PM.

Wave TypeTime (NZST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 6PM (Tue 7th Jul)6ft (1.8m) 9s
Best Surf 6PM (Tue 7th Jul)6ft (1.8m) 9s
Most Powerful 6AM (Fri 10th Jul)16ft (5.0m) 11s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Rolling Stones over the next 16 days.


Updates in  hr  min  s Forecast update imminent

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s coming up at Rolling Stones. This is a reef break that lights up for an S swell, and it’s one for the advanced crew. The water is a bit colder than normal for this time of year, sitting at 56°, so throw on that extra rubber.

We’ve got a bit of a slow start. Tuesday the 7th is looking like a tease, not quite the full deal. The real action starts to build through the week. Thursday the 9th is where things get interesting, but it’s not quite clean enough to call a standout. By Friday the 10th, we get a big pulse of swell, but the wind goes bananas – 25 mph from the south – so that’s a full write-off. Saturday the 11th is messy too. Honestly, the first week is mostly a waiting game with a lot of cross-onshore chop ruining the bigger swells.

The true standout, the one you want to circle on the calendar, is Thursday the 16th of July. The wind goes light and cross-offshore, and that swell (5-6 ft from the SE) has a long 14-second period. That’s proper groundswell, and at a reef setup like Rolling Stones, it’s going to shape up beautifully. The combined wave energy is strong, and it’s going to be clean. Keep an eye on the direction though – the optimum is from the S, and this is coming from the SE, so it might not be absolutely perfect, but it’s the best on offer by a long shot.

After that, the weather gets wild again. There’s a massive dump of swell on Saturday the 18th – 18 ft from the SSW – but with 16 mph cross-onshore winds and heavy rain, it’s blown out. That’s kite-surf territory, not paddle. The following week keeps some size but the winds stay ugly.

Looking into the third week, Tuesday the 21st and Wednesday the 22nd show some hope. Morning glass on the 21st with a 5 ft S swell (9-second period) has very clean conditions, making it a good, mellow option for the advanced surfer.

So, your best bet? Get on it Thursday the 16th. It’s the cleanest, most powerful window of the whole run. Everything else is either too windy, too messy, or too far off to promise.

Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Moderate rain (total 16mm), heaviest on Thu night. Very mild (max 13°C on Thu afternoon, min 10°C on Tue morning). Winds increasing (calm on Tue morning, strong winds from the S by Thu night).

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Moderate rain (total 12mm), heaviest on Fri morning. Very mild (max 11°C on Fri morning, min 8°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the S on Fri morning, calm by Sun afternoon).

Tuesday
7
Wednesday
8
Thursday
9
Friday
10
Saturday
11
Sunday
12
Monday
13
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
2
2
2
2
2
0
3
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
2
2
2
1
1
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1.6
E
9
1.8
E
10
2.1
ESE
10
1.9
ESE
10
1.8
ESE
10
1.7
ESE
10
3.5
S
9
4
SSE
11
4
S
10
5
SSE
11
4
SSE
10
3
SSE
10
2.5
SSE
10
2.2
SE
10
1.8
SE
10
1.8
SE
9
1.5
SE
9
1.3
SE
9
1.2
ESE
9
0.9
SE
8
0.9
ESE
9
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
427
602
821
717
650
551
1918
3970
2730
5718
3156
1855
1111
924
640
531
375
268
202
98
138
Wind (km/h)
5
WNW
5
SSW
10
WSW
15
WSW
15
SW
15
WSW
5
SW
15
SW
40
S
40
S
40
SSW
30
SSW
25
SSW
20
S
10
SSW
10
WSW
5
SSW
10
N
15
N
15
NNE
10
NNW
Wind State
glassy
cross-on
cross
cross
cross
cross
cross-on
cross-on
on
on
cross-on
cross-on
cross-on
cross-on
cross-on
cross
cross-on
off
cross-off
cross-off
off
High Tide
10:48AM1.53m
11:16PM1.60m
11:34AM1.57m
00:04AM1.63m
12:26PM1.63m
00:54AM1.67m
1:22PM1.70m
1:49AM1.70m
2:19PM1.77m
2:46AM1.73m
3:16PM1.84m
3:46AM1.75m
4:14PM1.90m
Low Tide
5:01PM0.35m
5:32AM0.31m
5:49PM0.35m
6:18AM0.31m
6:42PM0.36m
7:07AM0.30m
7:39PM0.34m
8:00AM0.29m
8:39PM0.30m
8:58AM0.26m
9:39PM0.25m
10:00AM0.22m
10:38PM0.19m
part cloud
cloud
rain showers
cloud
cloud
part cloud
light rain
light rain
mod rain
light rain
light rain
light rain
light rain
rain showers
part cloud
cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:26
7:26
7:26
7:26
7:26
7:26
7:24
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
4:59
5:00
5:00
5:00
5:01
5:01
5:02
 mm
1
2
3
10
3
2
4
2
1
Temp °C
12
12
11
11
12
12
12
13
12
11
11
10
11
11
10
9
10
10
13
15
12
Feels °C
11
11
10
8
9
9
11
9
6
3
3
4
6
6
6
6
8
7
9
11
9
Swell 1
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1.6
E
9
1.8
E
10
2.1
ESE
10
1.9
ESE
10
1.8
ESE
10
1.7
ESE
10
1.5
ESE
10
3
SSW
11
1.5
ESE
10
0.4
SSW
18
0.5
S
17
2.5
SE
10
0.4
SSW
10
2.2
SE
10
1.8
SE
10
1.8
SE
9
1.5
SE
9
1.3
SE
9
1.2
ESE
9
0.9
SE
8
0.9
ESE
9
Energy kJ
427
602
821
717
650
551
442
2022
408
102
147
1391
36
924
640
531
375
260
202
98
138
Swell 2
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.5
SSW
10
0.6
SSW
10
0.6
SSW
10
0.6
S
8
0.6
S
8
0.7
S
7
0.4
NE
7
0.3
SSW
19
0.5
S
15
0.3
SSW
15
0.6
S
19
0.9
SSW
7
0.9
S
15
0.9
S
14
0.9
S
13
0.7
S
11
0.6
S
10
0.5
ENE
5
Energy kJ
59
78
74
52
48
52
14
74
121
47
259
89
352
324
268
127
77
14
Swell 3
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.4
SSW
17
0.4
SSW
16
0.4
SSW
16
0.5
S
14
0.5
S
13
0.4
SSW
12
0.4
NE
8
0.5
S
12
0.3
S
20
0.4
SSW
10
0.8
S
16
0.8
S
7
0.6
ESE
11
0.5
ESE
10
0.5
SE
10
0.5
S
10
Energy kJ
97
86
81
104
92
51
18
75
74
35
339
70
79
62
51
50
Wind waves
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
3.5
S
9
4
SSE
11
4
S
10
5
SSE
11
4
SSE
10
3
SSE
10
2.5
SSE
10
1.1
S
8
0.8
SSW
6
0.3
NNE
2
0.6
ENE
4
0.3
N
2
Energy kJ
1918
3970
2730
5718
3156
1855
1111
142
53
1
8
1
Nearest Offshore or Glassy
Rating
(10 max)
2
2
2
2
2
2
4
4
1
1
2
3
2
2
3
2
3
2
2
1
1
Distance (km)
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
158
162
162
82
82
91
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
Best forecast wave conditions in Gisborne and Mahia
Rating
(10 max)
3
3
4
3
3
3
4
4
4
3
3
2
2
2
1
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand
Rating
(10 max)
4
4
4
3
4
4
6
7
5
5
5
5
5
5
4
4
4
3
2
2
4
Header Global
Rating
(10 max)
7
5
7
9
8
9
7
7
6
7
5
5
5
5
5
5
9
9
7
5
6
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
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Information about the Rolling Stones Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Rolling Stones provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Rolling Stones can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Rolling Stones surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Rolling Stones) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).

Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Rolling Stones may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.

Rolling Stones is 48 km (30 miles) from the city of Gisborne. If you plan a holiday in Gisborne and Mahia, look for hotels and other accommodation in Gisborne. Gisborne has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

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