Te Araroa Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s talk about what’s on offer for Te Araroa over the next couple of weeks.

Right now, it is not looking good at all. There is a big gap of quiet, poor surf from the start of the period, lasting several days with absolutely nothing to get excited about. The winds are messy and the swell is weak or too short-period through the first half of the period.

The first real chance of a wave comes on Saturday the 15th. The wind shifts around to a cross-off, with periods of lighter winds, and the swell pushes into the 7 ft to 8 ft range from the east, but with period still a bit short at 8 seconds. It will be clean by the afternoon, and combined swell energy is moderate at 766. It’s a start, but nothing special.

The standout window actually lands on Thursday the 28th of August. That’s the one to circle on the calendar. We’re looking at a strong, glassy morning with a 10 ft groundswell from the northwest with a period of 8 seconds, blasting in with a combined energy reading of 1221 – that is proper. This is for experienced surfers only, as the size is over 8 ft. The wind is glassy, making for perfect clean conditions. The afternoon swell pushes even bigger to 12 ft (energy jumps to 1927), but it swings more cross-on, so the morning window is the one to hit.

Outside of that, there is a small state of clean, waist-high swell (4 ft from the southeast) on Thursday the 20th with light cross-off winds, but it’s nothing memorable. A similar small, glassy 4 ft southeast swell shows up on Friday the 21st morning, but the quality is just ordinary.

There’s another shot on the 27th of August, with some 5 ft swell from the north-northwest but the period is a very short 5 seconds so it will be pretty weak and sloppy.

Honestly, for a spot like Te Araroa that can offer good, consistent waves, this is a long dry spell. The water temperature is around 59°F which is about average for the time of year. But don't lose hope – the long-range glassy 10 ft morning on the 28th is the standout, and it looks like the kind of day that could make the wait worthwhile. The crowds are never an issue there, so you’ll have it to yourself.

Rusty.

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