Whangara Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s take a look at what we’ve got on the calendar for the next couple of weeks. The whole outlook centers on one spot – Whangara.

Right now, we’re in a bit of a flat spell with a side of strong wind to start. Monday the 17th is a write-off: solid 13ft of southerly swell hitting the beach, but it’s blowing 22 mph from the south, cross-on, and the water’s a mess. That combined wave energy reads a hefty 3160 – there’s power there, but it’s totally unsurfable for paddling in. This setup would be way more interesting for kite surfing than trying to paddle out into this lumpy cross-chop.

The whole week pretty much stays in the “poor surf conditions” category through to Thursday, the 21st of August. There’s a serious gap of four days with no real recommendation. The wind stays up, the swell’s either too big and blown out, or it drops off into nothing.

Then Friday morning, August 21st, we finally get a break in the weather. The wind swings to a light NNW at 6 mph, giving us clean, cross-off conditions. The swell is tiny though – 2ft from the south with a very long period of 16 seconds. That groundswell energy is still pretty weak at 447, but the clean conditions and glassy surface mean it won’t be completely flat. It’s small, long-period south swell – great shape for a reef or point, but at a beach-break setup, that long period will make it break really straight. Not a standout, just the first clean window after the blowout.

Saturday the 22nd and Sunday the 23rd are even smaller – under 2ft – with some offshore winds, but not enough push to bother paddling out. The energy drops to 39 and 46, which is just about flat.

We then have another long stretch of tiny, clean but barely surfable waves right through until Sunday the 30th of August. The energy readings are consistently in the teens and twenties – that’s weak stuff. There’s nothing to get excited about.

But here’s the standout – and it’s a good one. Monday the 31st of August morning at Whangara. The wind goes glassy – 3 mph from the west-northwest, dead calm, offshore, and glass-like. The swell shows 6ft from the north-northeast, period 9 seconds, with combined energy at 874 – that’s moderate, solid wave energy for the area. The water temperature is 56°, which is about 1° below the long-term average, so nothing unusual for this time of year. This is the call: a clean, moderate northeast swell with glassy conditions. That’s surfable, good shape, and the wind won’t spoil a thing. The odds of it being clean and fun are high. Just keep in mind Whangara can get crowded at times, so if it’s pumping, you won’t be alone.

After that, the first couple of days of September look like the swell fades again, dropping back under 3ft with weaker energy and a light cross-onshore breeze coming in.

So to wrap it up: the first half of this forecast is a rocky, blown-out mess. The real window to watch is Monday the 31st of August morning. Everything else is either flat or too windy. Mark that date – it’s the only true standout.

Rusty.

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