Te Araroa Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here, your local surf reporter for the Te Araroa region, lookin’ after the East Cape. Let’s be straight with you: the next 16 days are a tough stretch for surfers. The good news is there’s no huge gap at the start with zero options, but the first week or so is mostly small, weak, and ordinary. We finally see a bit of size and energy come through around the 4th of September and into the following week, but it comes with strong cross-shore winds that mess up the quality. The standout is the morning of the 7th of September, when we get a clean, glassy session that’s easily the best of the bunch. Water temperature here is 58°F, pretty much what you’d expect for this time of year.

Te Araroa itself is a beach and point setup, consistent and beginner-friendly, exposed to swell but needing that NE direction from the optimum. The first few days—starting Wednesday the 26th of August—are a washout. We’re looking at tiny 1 ft to 1 ft swell from the SE, with periods around 13 seconds, but combined energy is a measly 41 to 43 (weak). Winds are cross-off or cross, and the conditions are clean but the surf is just too small and weak to get excited about. Thursday the 27th is similarly tiny, though the morning is glassy with a 3 mph southerly—still, only 1 ft of swell means you’d be waiting forever for a waist-high set. Friday the 28th brings a bump from the NNE at 2 ft but it’s a 4-second period windswell, onshore, with no energy (20). That’s a no-go. Saturday the 29th sees a jump in size to 7 ft from the NW, but it’s cross-on with rain and a combined energy of 418 (moderate to strong). The period is short at 7 seconds, so it’s lumpy and choppy. The afternoon hits 8 ft from the NW, but again cross-shore and messy—only for experts, and even then it’s marginal with a score of 1. Sunday the 30th backs off to 3 ft from the N, cross-off wind, still weak energy (143), and just ordinary. Monday the 31st is similar, small and clean but nothing worth paddling out for.

We roll into September with nothing better. Tuesday the 1st has 2 ft to 2 ft swells, cross-off winds, and combined energy under 70. The afternoon is “surfable but very ordinary”—that about sums it up. Wednesday the 2nd brings 5 ft from the WNW, but with a fresh 19 mph cross-shore wind and energy at 179 (weak-moderate), it’s lumpy and cross-chop. Not worth it. The 3rd of September is tiny again, 1 ft, waste of time. Then Friday the 4th of September finally shows some promise: a morning of 4 ft from the WNW, but with cross-shore winds at 12 mph and energy of 113 (weak-moderate). The afternoon jumps to 7 ft from the NW, combined energy of 373 (moderate-strong), but the period is 6 seconds and winds are 16 mph cross-shore—choppy and messy. Still not a true standout. Saturday the 5th has 6 ft to 5 ft from the NW, cross to cross-off winds, energy around 250, but the quality is marginal at best.

Now, the best of the forecast lands on Sunday the 7th of September. Early morning, it’s glassy with a light WSW wind at 3 mph, 4 ft swell from the NW at 6 seconds, and combined energy of 118 (weak-moderate). The swell direction (NW) is not the optimum NE, and the period is short, but the clean glassy conditions make it the standout session. Small but clean waves, perfect for a longboard or a funboarder who doesn’t mind the smaller size. The break is consistent and never crowded, so you’ll have plenty of room. After that, it drops off again—Monday the 8th of September is tiny and cross-shore, and the rest of the second week stays small (1 ft to 2 ft) with weak energy until the afternoon of the 10th of September, when we see 2 ft from the NE with a light offshore southerly at 6 mph, combined energy 95 (weak), and clean conditions—surfable but very ordinary.

Overall, don’t expect any pumping sessions. The swell is too small and wind-prone for most of the window. The glassy morning on the 7th of September is your best bet for a quiet, clean surf. For bigger days around the 4th to 6th of September, the strong cross-shore winds and short period make it more suited to a kite surfer than a paddler—especially at a beach break. That’s the call.

- Rusty

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