Castlepoint - The Gap Surf Break

Lat Long: 40.91° S 176.22° E

Castlepoint - The Gap Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 11 am 29 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Castlepoint - The Gap sea temperature is
12.0°C
0.5° 

Castlepoint - The Gap surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Castlepoint - The Gap surf forecast from 29 Aug 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Tuesday 1 Sep, 9PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 12s period, S swell with offshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Wednesday 2 Sep, 3PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 17s period, S swell with 4,971 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 29 Aug, 6PM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 11s period with S 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 Saturday (Aug 29) at 6PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 7s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Castlepoint - The Gap in the next 16 days are 3.0m 17s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 02) at 3PM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 4s period and expected on Tuesday (Sep 01) at 3AM.

Wave TypeTime (NZST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 6PM (Sat 29th Aug)3ft (0.9m) 11s
Best Surf 9PM (Tue 1st Sep)10ft (3.0m) 12s
Most Powerful 3PM (Wed 2nd Sep)10ft (3.0m) 17s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Castlepoint - The Gap over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

G’day, I’m Rusty. Righto, let’s have a look at what’s on the cards for Castlepoint – The Gap over the next couple of weeks. We’ve got a bit of a slow start, but there are a couple of bright spots to get keen on.

The first few days are pretty quiet. Saturday morning (29 August) kicks off with a tiny 3.3 ft S swell at 11 seconds, and a combined energy of 310 – pretty weak. The wind is a fresh 35 km/h offshore from the NW, so it’s clean, but the swell is just too small and weak to get excited about. That pattern hangs around through Sunday (30 August), with the swell dropping to 1.6 ft and the energy falling to 120. It’s all clean but pretty ordinary. The water temp is sitting at 53.6°F, which is about average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

Monday morning (31 August) is where things start to wake up. The swell jumps to 7.5 ft from the S with a 12-second period and the combined energy rockets to 1546 – moderate to strong energy now. The wind is a moderate 20 km/h offshore from the WNW, so it’s clean. This is a solid option, especially for surfers who can handle chest-to-head-high waves. The swell is over 5 ft but under 8 ft, so it’s still okay for intermediate surfers, but beginners might find it a bit much. That pulse holds into the afternoon, with 7.9 ft and even more energy (1687), though the wind picks up to a fresh 35 km/h, so the early morning is the better call.

Then things get a bit gnarly. Tuesday (1 September) sees the swell push up to 11.5 ft from the SSW with a 13-second period and massive energy at 5675 – that’s strong. But the wind swings to a cross-off from the SW at 30 km/h, and the write-up flags marginal conditions. At 11.5 ft, this is expert territory only – over 8 ft, so only for the experienced crew. The wave quality is questionable, so unless you’re a charger looking for a challenge, you might sit this one out.

The standout window is Wednesday (2 September). Morning brings a clean 9.8 ft swell from the S with a 13-second period, offshore wind from the WNW at 25 km/h, and energy at 3373 – strong and clean. The report says “excellent surf conditions for experienced surfers.” The afternoon gets even better: same size, same wind, but the period stretches to 17 seconds – that’s very long-period groundswell. The energy pushes to 4975. This is the best on offer. You’ll get well-shaped, powerful waves, but at 9.8 ft it’s still for experts only. That long period is magic at a reef or point, and The Gap is a sheltered spot, so it should handle it well. Expect long lulls between sets, making the paddle out easier.

Thursday (3 September) drops back to 5.2 ft with 13-second period and energy at 891 – still clean offshore wind, but the report calls it marginal, likely due to tide or swell size. Friday (4 September) fades into small 3 ft swells with low energy (213), not worth rousing for.

Then Saturday (5 September) brings another pulse: 7.2 ft from the S at 10 seconds, clean offshore NW wind at 20 km/h, and energy at 1031. This is a very solid option – solid head-high waves with good shape. The period is shorter (10 seconds), so more frequent sets, and it’s under the 8 ft threshold, so experienced intermediates can have a crack too. The morning is the pick.

The second week gets patchy. Sunday (6 September) drops to small 2 ft, and Monday (7 September) has a glassy morning with 1.6 ft and a period of 18 seconds – very long period but tiny, so not much to work with. The 18-second period means the small waves will be clean and lined up if they break, but it’s a long wait between sets for not much reward. That glassy condition is a treat, though.

Tuesday (8 September) sees a 5.2 ft NE swell with a short 7-second period and 402 energy – that’s a windswell, messy, not worth it. Wednesday (9 September) is poor all around.

Now, Thursday (10 September) is a bit of an anomaly. The forecast shows a massive 14.8 ft S swell at 14 seconds with energy at 7752 in the morning and 8619 in the afternoon – that’s very strong energy. But the report explicitly states the swell is too big for this

Short Range Forecast

Light rain (total 6mm), mostly falling on Mon night. Very mild (max 16°C on Sun morning, min 6°C on Mon night). Winds increasing (light winds from the W on Sun morning, strong winds from the WNW by Mon night).

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Light rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Tue morning. Very mild (max 17°C on Thu afternoon, min 4°C on Tue night). Winds increasing (light winds from the NW on Tue night, strong winds from the WNW by Wed night).

Saturday
29
Sunday
30
Monday
31
Tuesday
1
Wednesday
2
Thursday
3
Friday
4
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
0
1
1
1
1
0
3
2
0
2
2
4
4
4
3
1
2
0
1
1
1
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1
S
11
0.9
S
11
0.7
S
10
0.5
S
10
0.7
SSW
12
0.6
SSW
17
2.3
S
12
2.4
SSW
12
1.9
SSW
13
3.5
SSW
13
3
SSW
12
3
S
12
3
S
13
3
S
17
2.4
S
15
1.6
S
13
1.3
S
12
1.1
S
12
0.9
SSW
11
0.6
SSW
10
1.1
S
9
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
244
191
108
51
117
224
1513
1670
1156
3606
2435
3186
3364
4971
2424
888
505
322
198
85
199
Wind (km/h)
35
NW
25
NW
25
NW
25
WNW
15
W
20
SW
20
WNW
35
WNW
45
WNW
30
SW
25
SW
10
WNW
25
WNW
25
WNW
35
WNW
30
WNW
25
NW
30
NW
20
WNW
20
WNW
10
WNW
Wind State
off
off
off
off
off
cross-off
off
off
off
cross-off
cross-off
off
off
off
off
off
off
off
off
off
off
High Tide
5:49PM1.18m
6:21AM1.12m
6:43PM1.19m
7:12AM1.17m
7:39PM1.22m
8:03AM1.24m
8:33PM1.24m
8:53AM1.31m
9:25PM1.28m
9:42AM1.37m
10:15PM1.30m
10:31AM1.42m
11:03PM1.32m
Low Tide
11:34AM0.20m
00:25AM0.24m
12:28PM0.19m
1:16AM0.22m
1:23PM0.17m
2:05AM0.20m
2:21PM0.15m
2:54AM0.17m
3:17PM0.12m
3:42AM0.13m
4:10PM0.07m
4:30AM0.08m
5:01PM0.03m
part cloud
cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
rain showers
clear
part cloud
rain showers
light rain
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
6:45
6:43
6:41
6:39
6:37
6:37
6:35
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:46
5:47
5:49
5:50
5:51
5:52
5:52
 mm
1
5
2
Temp °C
14
14
11
16
16
13
14
14
13
7
9
6
14
14
14
15
17
15
18
17
12
Feels °C
7
8
6
13
12
4
6
6
3
0
1
1
7
9
6
10
13
9
12
12
9
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for Castlepoint - The Gap:

join our community of surf reporters

FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website

The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Castlepoint - The Gap surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.


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.

Nearest locationNearest