Wharariki Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Righto, let’s have a look at Wharariki Beach. It’s a consistently breaking, exposed spot that works best with the swell from the northwest. The water temp is sitting at 57°, which is pretty much normal for this time of year, nothing to write home about.

The first few days are a bit of a write-off, to be honest. Wednesday the 29th and Thursday the 30th are poor surf conditions thanks to onshore winds and lumpy, messy seas. Friday the 31st sees a big jump in size with an 12 to 13ft west-northwest swell, but it’s being hammered by a near gale, making it a total no-go for paddle surfing – that kind of setup is more for kite surfers. The combined energy is massive (1644 to 3762), but it’s just too wild.

Now, Saturday the 1st of August starts to look a bit more promising. The morning has a clean 8ft west-northwest swell with moderate cross-offshore winds from the southeast, but the score is just marginal. The real standout is Saturday afternoon: a drop to 5ft from the west, with a 13-second period, and the wind goes light and cross-off. The sea is clean, and the combined energy (860) is moderate. That’s the best session of the early run.

Sunday morning the 2nd is glassy with a 3ft west swell, 12-second period, and clean conditions. It’s small but would be a fun, uncrowded wave. The afternoon goes back to poor with a fresh cross-offshore wind.

The middle of the week (Monday 3rd to Tuesday 4th) has a clean, long-period 18-second west swell at 4 to 5ft, but the wind is strong to fresh. The best bet there is Tuesday afternoon: 4ft west swell, 15-second period, light cross-offshore breeze and clean. That’s a solid, quality option.

The rest of the first week and into the second week is largely small (2 to 4ft) and clean, but never really gets exciting. The wind stays cross-offshore, but the swell is inconsistent. The 18-second west swell that pops up on Saturday the 8th and Sunday the 9th is a tease, but the wind is strong and the wave heights are under 3ft.

The real standout of the whole 16-day window is the Thursday the 13th of August. Morning is glassy, with a 10ft northwest swell, 10-second period, and a combined energy of 2072. That’s a big, powerful swell. But that’s a word of caution: 10ft is expert territory, and the period is just 10 seconds, so it’ll be a bit crumbly and messy. Still, for a crew that knows what they’re doing, that’s the best swell on offer. It’s going to be big and powerful, but expect it to be a bit sectiony.

Overall, the best on offer is Saturday afternoon the 1st for a fun, clean size, and the big Thursday the 13th for the experts. Everything else is small, clean, and average.

Rusty

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