Te Ikaamaru Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Te Ikaamaru Bay.

To be straight with you, this 16-day window is a real mixed bag, and there’s a lot of poor conditions to wade through before we get to anything worth paddling for. For the first week and a half, it's pretty grim. From Wednesday the 2nd right through to Tuesday the 8th, the wind is howling onshore or cross-onshore, and the swell is all over the place with very short periods. The water is sitting at 57°F which is a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, but you won't be enjoying it in those conditions. Wave energy is weak to moderate at best, maxing out at 937 (moderate) on Friday the 4th, but with a near gale ruining it. That stretch is a write-off for paddle surfing.

Then we get a bit of a lull, with tiny, messy, or blown-out surf from the 9th through the 13th, before a brief window of hope appears.

The real standout, and the only time I’d get excited, is Thursday the 10th of September. The morning is looking special. We’ve got a solid 10ft swell from the NW with a short period of 7 seconds, so it’ll be a bit punchy, but the real story is the wind. It’s a moderate offshore breeze from the SSE, which is going to groom those faces clean. The combined energy is a strong 820 (strong), so there’s plenty of push. The wave comment says “expect very good surf conditions,” and that’s what we’re after. Now, Te Ikaamaru Bay is a fairly exposed spot, and the optimum swell direction is NW, so this is hitting it right. It’s a break for beginners, and with the swell over 8ft, it’s going to be too big for the learning crowd—this is expert territory only. The afternoon is a step down, with a cross-off wind and a “marginal” forecast, so hit the morning session hard.

After that, it’s back to the doldrums. From the 11th to the 17th, we’re looking at tiny, weak surf, often with strong onshore winds or just flat spells. There’s a moment on the 14th with glassy conditions and a tiny 0.3ft swell, but that’s more of a swim than a surf. The long period swells (15-19 seconds) on the 11th and 12th are present, but they’re tiny and either blown out or mushy.

So, my call: The only real highlight is the morning of Thursday the 10th. Get out there if you’re experienced and can handle the size. The rest of the forecast is a write-off. You’ll be waiting a long time for another good one.

Rusty.

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