Whangamata Bar Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’m gonna be straight with you – this 16-day outlook for the Whangamata Bar is a bit of a mixed bag. We’ve got some solid energy rolling in early on, but a lot of it gets chopped up by messy winds. The water temp here is sitting at 60°F, which is pretty much spot on for this time of year, nothing unusual there.

The real action kicks off on Saturday the 4th of July, but it’s nothing to write home about. Saturday morning has a 4ft swell out of the E with a 12-second period, giving us moderate wave energy (487). However, the wind is a light cross-onshore, so it’s a bit rippled and the score is low. That afternoon, the wind picks up to a moderate cross-shore breeze, and the surf is a write-off.

Now, keep your eyes on Sunday the 5th of July morning. That’s your early standout. The swell drops to 3ft, but it’s glassy – dead calm with WNW winds at just 6 mph. It’ll be clean as a whistle. The E swell has a 10-second period, so it’s got a little bit of shape. The combined energy is moderate (350). This is the time for a quiet, clean paddle.

Monday the 6th of July morning is another little gem. We’ve got a 6ft swell out of the NNE, but the period is short at 7 seconds, so it’s windswell, not groundswell. But the wind is gentle offshore from the WSW (12 mph), which means clean faces. The energy jumps up to 493 (moderate). This is about as good as it gets for the whole run – decent size, clean lines. It might be a bit much for absolute beginners at that size (6ft), but for intermediates, it’s fun.

After that, the week gets ordinary. Tuesday and Wednesday have smaller surf (4ft, 2ft) with mostly cross or cross-onshore winds. Thursday the 9th has a clean 2ft wave, but it’s weak (137 energy) and only surfable, not great.

From Friday the 10th of July right through to Tuesday the 15th of July, we hit a big dry spell. The swell drops to a pathetic 0.7ft to 1ft, with energy down in the double digits. It’s flat, plain and simple. A few mornings are glassy, but there’s no wave to ride. That’s about six days of nothing worth paddling for.

Then on Thursday the 16th of July, we get a pulse. A 5ft swell out of the N with a 6-second period (very short period) hits, but the wind is a fresh onshore 19 mph from the NE. Lumpy, messy, poor surf. The energy is only 175 (weak). Not a goer.

Finally, on Saturday the 18th of July morning, we get a last chance. A 3ft NE swell (8-second period) with a light cross-offshore wind from the NNW. It’s clean, but the energy is low (95) and the swell is weak. Only surfable, not good.

So, bottom line: your best bets are Sunday 5th of July morning for the glassy, clean conditions, and Monday 6th of July morning for the biggest, cleanest swell of the run. After that, it’s a long flat stretch until the 16th, which is messy. The bar is inconsistent, and this blank run is pretty normal for the area when the wind doesn’t play ball. A couple of decent windows, but you’ve got to pick your moment.

- Rusty

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