
Surf Forecasts:
Castlepoint - The Gap surf forecast from 7 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 8 Jul, 6AM (local time) - 8ft (2.5m), 10s period, E swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 9 Jul, 3PM (local time) - 18ft (5.5m), 11s period, SSE swell with 6,905 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 8 Jul, 6AM (local time) - 8ft (2.5m), 10s period with E swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Castlepoint - The Gap this week:
The surf forecast for Castlepoint - The Gap over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Jul 08) at 6AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.5m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 1.1m and 7s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Castlepoint - The Gap in the next 16 days are 5.5m 11s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 09) at 3PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.6m 3s period and expected on Tuesday (Jul 14) at 3AM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 6AM (Wed 8th Jul) | 8ft (2.5m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 6AM (Wed 8th Jul) | 8ft (2.5m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 3PM (Thu 9th Jul) | 18ft (5.5m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Castlepoint - The Gap over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
G’day, Rusty here. Let’s talk about The Gap at Castlepoint.
Right now, Tuesday morning’s pushing a 3.0m swell out of the east, combined energy at 2646 (moderate wave energy), but the wind’s onshore and it’s raining lightly. Water temp is 13° – about average. That session’s marginal with crappy tide conditions. Tuesday afternoon gets worse with the wind picking up. Not a great start.
Wednesday and Thursday are a mess – Thursday’s gale-force southerly winds and 5.0m to 5.5m swells (combined energy 5463 to 6950, very strong) mean blown-out, dangerous surf. Don’t bother. Friday stays lumpy with cross-shore winds on 3.0m swell (combined energy 2480-2536, strong). Saturday’s choppy with 1.6m to 2.0m – no good.
Now Sunday the 12th – clean, clear, and a light offshore from the northwest at 5 km/h. Swell is 1.5m from the east-southeast with a 10-second period, combined energy 769 (moderate). The data says “expect good surf conditions.” For a beginner-friendly, sheltered break like The Gap, this is your best bet in the first week. Crowds are often around.
Monday the 13th through Wednesday the 15th are tiny – 0.8m to 1.1m swell, combined energy as low as 123 to 484 (weak). Clean but ordinary.
But hold on – from Thursday the 16th, things heat up. Thursday has a 1.9m east-southeast swell with a very long 14-second period, combined energy 2263 (moderate-strong), and a strong offshore from the west-northwest at 40 km/h. It’s clean but hard to paddle into.
Friday the 17th morning is the standout. Swell of 2.1m from the southeast with a 13-second period (combined energy 1612, moderate-strong), and a gentle offshore breeze from the west at 15 km/h. The data says “expect very good surf conditions.” That long-period groundswell will wrap in nicely, making for powerful, well-shaped waves. Crowds are a given. Not beginner-friendly at that size.
Saturday the 18th drops off – clean but small and poor.
Sunday the 19th afternoon is another gem. A 2.5m south swell with a 9-second period (combined energy 1657, moderate-strong), and light cross-offshore wind from the west-southwest at 10 km/h. “Expect very good surf conditions” – this is clean, punchy, and for experienced surfers.
Monday the 20th is a fun, clean day with 1.3m east-southeast swell and a long 13-second period (combined energy 1000-1184, moderate), near-calm wind, and “expect very good surf conditions.”
Late Tuesday the 21st and Wednesday the 22nd fade, with strong offshore winds making paddling tough.
The best of the lot is Friday the 17th morning, with Sunday the 19th afternoon a close second. The rest is mostly marginal or small, with a few clean windows for the patient.
– Rusty
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 62mm), heaviest during Wed night. Very mild (max 12°C on Tue morning, min 9°C on Thu night). Winds increasing (calm on Tue morning, near gales from the S by Wed night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Fri morning. Very mild (max 10°C on Sat morning, min 6°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the S on Fri morning, light winds from the WNW by Sat night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 | |
Swell Height Map | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | ESE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
1463 | 1790 | 1664 | 1124 | 710 | 3499 | 4682 | 6905 | 3647 | 1802 | 1778 | 1339 | 446 | 761 | 584 | 428 | 299 | 222 | 163 | 157 | 154 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | off | off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 10:24AM1.20m | 10:51PM1.23m | 11:10AM1.26m | 11:38PM1.27m | 11:59AM1.33m | 00:27AM1.31m | 12:51PM1.40m | 1:19AM1.33m | 1:45PM1.47m | 2:16AM1.35m | 2:41PM1.53m | 3:16AM1.36m | 3:37PM1.57m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 4:34PM0.17m | 5:12AM0.15m | 5:24PM0.15m | 5:56AM0.13m | 6:15PM0.13m | 6:41AM0.11m | 7:07PM0.10m | 7:30AM0.09m | 8:02PM0.06m | 8:22AM0.06m | 8:59PM0.03m | 9:20AM0.03m | 9:59PM0.01m | ||||||||
7:39 | — | — | 7:39 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | |
— | 5:00 | — | — | 5:00 | — | — | 5:00 | — | — | 5:01 | — | — | 5:02 | — | — | 5:02 | — | — | 5:04 | — | |
mm | 3 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 9 |
Feels °C | 11 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 5 | -1 | -1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 4 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | SSW 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | SSW 21 | SSW 19 | ESE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 | ESE 10 |
958 | 132 | 1664 | 1124 | 710 | 627 | 676 | 45 | 74 | 1802 | 1778 | 1339 | 446 | 761 | 584 | 428 | 293 | 222 | 163 | 157 | 154 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 10 | SSW 16 | S 8 | S 7 | SSW 13 | SSW 18 | SSW 16 | — | — | SSW 13 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | E 10 | SSW 18 | SSW 16 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | S 10 | S 13 | SSW 13 |
140 | 84 | 146 | 127 | 62 | 31 | 105 | — | — | 92 | 246 | 179 | 290 | 427 | 406 | 341 | 299 | 189 | 104 | 117 | 54 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 16 | — | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | S 20 | — | — | — | — | SSW 17 | — | — | SSW 10 | — | S 7 | — | — | — | — | — | S 9 |
85 | — | 120 | 102 | 7 | — | — | — | — | 101 | — | — | 41 | — | 58 | — | — | — | — | — | 6 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | E 10 | — | — | S 7 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSW 8 | SSW 8 | — | S 7 | S 7 | — | — | — | NNE 3 | N 3 | N 3 | N 3 |
1463 | 1790 | — | — | 200 | 3499 | 4682 | 6905 | 3647 | 485 | 512 | — | 97 | 68 | — | — | — | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 99 | 55 | 1 | 76 | 156 | 228 | 310 | 287 | 235 | 273 | 1 | 102 | 102 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 28 |
Best forecast wave conditions in The Wairarapa | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Castlepoint - The Gap Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Castlepoint - The Gap provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Castlepoint - The Gap can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Castlepoint - The Gap 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 (Castlepoint - The Gap) 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 Castlepoint - The Gap 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.
Are you planning a holiday in The Wairarapa? If you are looking for accommodation near Castlepoint - The Gap, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in The Wairarapa, consider staying in Masterton which is 48 km (30 miles) away. Other places in and around The Wairarapa where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Palmerston North which is 80 km (50 miles) away and Levin, 86 km (53 miles) away.










