Tairua Bar Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on the cards for the local region.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you – this is a pretty grim run of surf for the next couple of weeks. We're looking at a long, dry spell with hardly any waves worth paddling out for. Things are flat and lifeless for days on end. The one spot we've got to talk about is Tairua Bar, a beach and bar setup that's exposed to the northeast, but unfortunately, it's just not doing much for us.

The water temp is sitting at 59°F, which is about normal for the time of year, so no drama there.

We start the outlook on Wednesday the 19th with a tiny 2ft swell from the southeast, but it's a messy 5-second period, and a cross-shore wind leaves it all chopped up. That's a hard pass. From Thursday morning the 20th right through until the end of August, it's a wasteland. Swell heights are mostly under 2ft, sometimes down to 0.3ft, with combined energy figures barely into double digits (like 11 to 55). The winds are clean enough at times, with some offshore and even glassy conditions on the 20th afternoon, but there's just no energy in the water to push a wave. A few days in there, like the 29th, show a tiny bump of 2ft from the north with a 5-second period, but it's still too weak to get excited about. The entire first week is a write-off.

Now, looking into the second week, things get interesting for the wrong reasons. Around the 31st of August, we see a massive jump in energy. A 6ft swell from the north hits on Monday afternoon, and combined energy climbs to 560 (moderate). But here's the kicker – the wind is howling from the southeast at 19 mph, a fresh cross-onshore that's gonna make it a lumpy, blown-out mess. The period is only 7 seconds too, so it's a short, weak wind swell, not a proper groundswell. That same pattern rolls into the start of September. On Tuesday the 1st, we've got 6ft swell from the north with energy at 726, but again, 19 mph south-southeast cross-shore winds. The following days are similar: solid swell heights (4ft to 5ft) and moderate to strong energy (353 to 534), but always with a fresh cross-shore wind that's going to leave the surface ugly. This setup looks a lot more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing, to be honest.

The only glimmer of hope I can see is Thursday morning, the 3rd of September. We've got a 5ft swell from the east-northeast with a 7-second period, and the wind swings to a light south-southwest cross-offshore breeze, making things clean. The energy is still moderate (353). It's a marginal call, but if you're desperate for a wave, that might be your best, and really only, shot in the whole 16-day window. Even then, it's not great.

So, to sum it up: we've got a long, flat gap until the very end of the forecast, and then when the swell finally arrives, it's accompanied by nasty winds. The only real standout, if you can call it that, is that Thursday morning on the 3rd of September at Tairua Bar. It's not a classic, but it's all we've got. Keep your eyes on the forecasts, things can change, but right now, it's a tough one.

Rusty.

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