Whangamata Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G'day, Rusty here. Look, I've had a good look at the charts for Whangamata Beach, and I gotta be straight with you—it's a bit of a tough stretch ahead. We're looking at a long, dry run with barely a ripple for the next two weeks. The wave energy is just about non-existent, and honestly, there's nothing to get excited about until the very end of the outlook.

The first proper surfable day doesn't show up until Saturday, August 1st, and even then, it's only just scraping into the "surfable" category. The rest of the time before that, from now through Friday, July 31st, every single session is rated as "poor surf conditions." The swell heights are tiny, mostly between 0.3 ft and 2 ft, with combined energy readings that are weak, often in the single digits or low teens. For example, the highest energy we see in that whole period is 59 on Friday afternoon, the 17th, but that's with a 1 ft swell—it's just not enough to push anything worthwhile.

For the first week, the wind is often offshore or cross-offshore from the SW or WSW, which would keep the surface clean, but with no swell to work with, it's empty. On Tuesday, July 21st, we get a glassy morning with a 2 ft ENE swell and a period of 6 seconds, which is the closest thing to a pulse, but the energy is still only 31—weak. It's a long wait.

The standout, if you can call it that, is the very end of the period. Saturday, August 1st, has the best combo we've seen. The morning shows a 1 ft ENE swell with a period of 15 seconds, which is a very long period groundswell, and the combined energy bumps up to 82. The wind is a light WSW cross-offshore, keeping it clean. The afternoon sees a slight increase to 1 ft from the NE, still with a 15-second period, and energy at 93. Now, the water temperature is 59°F, which is about average for the time of year, so no surprises there. For a beginner-friendly beach break like Whangamata, a 1 ft swell with that long period will mean very long gaps between sets, and the waves might be a bit fat and straight-breaking on the beach. It's not a classic, but it's something to paddle out for if you're desperate. The crowds are described as "sometimes," so you might have a few others with the same idea.

So, bottom line: there's a big gap of no surf for nearly two weeks, then a single day on Saturday, August 1st, that offers some very ordinary, but surfable, waves. It's not great, but it's all we've got.

Rusty.

Read more