Waimea Rivermouth Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s break down the next couple of weeks. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, but there’s some real potential if you time it right.

First up, the early part of this week is a no-go. Tuesday is a washout with a small, weak cross-shore ripple—not worth the effort. We’re basically waiting for the ocean to get its act together. There’s a day or so of nothing before things start to move.

The real story starts Wednesday morning. Swell builds to 3ft from the south with a nice, long 18-second period. That’s proper groundswell energy, and the combined energy reads a solid 833, a huge jump from the weak 301 we saw on Tuesday. The wind is light easterly, giving us clean, cross-off conditions. That’s a damn good sign. This is where it starts getting fun for the experienced surfers.

The swell keeps pushing through Wednesday afternoon and into Thursday morning, peaking at 4ft from the south with a period of 16-18 seconds. The energy readings are over 1000, which is moderate-to-strong. The wind stays light and cross-off, making for some seriously clean lines. This stretch is the standout of the first week. For a river mouth, that long period can sometimes make things a bit straight, but the quality here is undeniable. Thursday afternoon and Friday see it ease back to 3-4ft, but the conditions stay clean and really good.

Now, Saturday the 15th throws a curveball. We get a bump in size to 6ft, but the swell direction swings to the east and the period drops to a short 9-10 seconds. It’s still clean under light winds, but that short period takes the magic away. It’ll be a bit more sectiony and less refined than the south swells we just had.

Sunday the 16th is one for the weather map, not the surf report. The swell jumps to 8ft with a near-gale warning and a risk of thunderstorms. That’s 1575 on the energy scale, which is strong, but it’s going to be a mess. That kind of size and wind is not for paddling. Honestly, that setup looks more interesting for the kite crowd than us. Best to stay home and watch from the bluff.

After that blow, Monday the 17th drops right back off into poor, cross-shore chop. We’re back to square one, with a couple of days of small surf and period around 7 seconds. The energy is weak again, in the 200-500 range. The swell direction is east, but there’s just not enough push.

The action picks back up in the back half of the month. From the 22nd onward, we see a return of the longer-period south swells, often with periods of 16-19 seconds. The energy readings start climbing again, getting into the 500-1200 range. The morning of the 24th looks excellent—3ft of south swell with an 18-second period and clean, light cross-off winds. The 25th and 26th mornings also rate as real standouts, with 4-4ft south swells and moderate but clean offshores. These later ones are a week and a half out, so treat them as promising—not a done deal. But the signals are there.

And hey, about the water—it’s sitting right around 81°, which is spot on for this time of year. No surprises there.

So, the pick of the fortnight? For my money, Thursday the 13th morning is the one to paddle out for. Bigger south swell, long period, light offshore winds—that's the recipe for a memorable session at Waimea Rivermouth. Keep the second week on your radar, but don't sleep on this Thursday.

Rusty out.

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