Surf Forecasts:
Whangara surf forecast from 11 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 17 Aug, 12PM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 10s period, S swell with cross-shore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 19 Aug, 12PM (local time) - 16ft (5.0m), 14s period, S swell with 8,858 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 12 Aug, 9PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 10s period with SE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Whangara this week:
The surf forecast for Whangara over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 12) at 9PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.6m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 11s. Another secondary swell of 0.5m and 8s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Whangara in the next 16 days are 5.0m 14s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 12PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 5.5m 14s period and expected on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 6AM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 9PM (Wed 12th Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 10s |
| Best Surf | 12PM (Mon 17th Aug) | 11ft (3.5m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 12PM (Wed 19th Aug) | 16ft (5.0m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Whangara over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, it’s Rusty. Whangara’s looking patchy for the next couple of weeks, but there’s a couple of days that’ll get your blood pumping. The first few days are a total wash—small, onshore slop that’s not worth your time. Water temp is about 56°F, which is normal for this time of year.
First real chance is Friday morning, August 14. Swell comes in at 7ft from the NE with a short period of 7 seconds—a bit lumpy. Wind is light from the N, cross-off, keeping the surface clean. The energy is moderate (450). Not a classic, but it’s a start.
The big one is Saturday morning, August 15. Whangara gets a clean 7ft swell from the ENE, period of 8 seconds, with glassy conditions—a WSW breeze at 3 mph. The energy is solid (508). The swell direction is spot on for the reef, and the water’s clean. No crowds, just a few of us. This is the session to plan for.
Sunday and Monday, August 16-17, get ugly. A strong SSW wind at 25 mph blows through, with a massive 13ft S swell on Monday—energy at 2,806. That’s for experts only, and with cross winds and lumpy chop, it’s a beast best left alone. Tuesday, August 18, drops to 8ft from the SE (12 seconds) but the wind is still fresh, making it choppy.
Next standout is Thursday morning, August 20. A 10ft S swell (12 seconds) hits with light WSW cross-off winds at 6 mph, energy at 2,673. This is for experienced surfers—too big for beginners. The wind is clean, and the direction matches the optimum. A solid second pick.
Friday, August 21, offers a smaller but clean session. Morning has a 6ft S swell (11 seconds) with a light NW offshore at 9 mph, energy at 862, and the afternoon holds 6ft with a cross-off. Both are well-shaped.
After that, it goes flat. Saturday, August 22, is marginal, and from Sunday, August 23, through Wednesday, August 26, the swell drops to 1ft to 2ft with poor conditions—energy as low as 64. Not worth paddling out. The last chance is Thursday morning, August 27, with a 4ft NE swell (9 seconds) and glassy glass by afternoon—a light S breeze at 3 mph. Energy is moderate (301), but it’s small.
So, the best is Saturday morning, August 15, with Thursday morning, August 20, for the crew who can handle it. The rest is a gamble.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 52mm), heaviest during Thu night. Very mild (max 15°C on Fri morning, min 10°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 15mm), heaviest on Sun morning. Very mild (max 14°C on Sat morning, min 7°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Sat morning, strong winds from the SSW by Sun morning). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 12 | Thursday 13 | Friday 14 | Saturday 15 | Sunday 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 8 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 8 | NE 7 | NE 7 | NE 7 | NE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | NE 8 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SE 12 | SE 12 | S 12 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 206 | 743 | 471 | 155 | 115 | 363 | 357 | 303 | 1220 | 502 | 278 | 292 | 123 | 70 | 3077 | 2792 | 2451 | 2322 | 1451 | 1013 | 3553 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | cross |
High Tide | 5:12PM1.63m | 5:37AM1.53m | 6:08PM1.65m | 6:34AM1.54m | 7:03PM1.66m | 7:29AM1.55m | 7:55PM1.65m | 8:22AM1.54m | 8:46PM1.61m | 9:13AM1.52m | 9:35PM1.56m | 10:03AM1.49m | 10:24PM1.49m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 10:52AM0.06m | 11:31PM0.09m | 11:51AM0.03m | 00:29AM0.06m | 12:48PM0.02m | 1:24AM0.04m | 1:42PM0.03m | 2:17AM0.03m | 2:35PM0.06m | 3:07AM0.05m | 3:27PM0.10m | 3:55AM0.09m | 4:16PM0.15m | ||||||||
 |  |  | |  |  |  |  |  | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | |
 | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — | 6:50 | — | — |
 | — | 5:27 | — | — | 5:28 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:31 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | 2 | 39 | 6 | 2 | 3 | — | — | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 12 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 10 |
Feels °C | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 15 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 8 | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 8 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | NE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | NE 8 | ENE 8 | SSW 18 | S 17 | SSE 10 | SE 12 | SE 12 | S 12 |
| kJ | 206 | 743 | 471 | 155 | 115 | 77 | 44 | 91 | 840 | 502 | 278 | 292 | 123 | 70 | 41 | 62 | 140 | 2322 | 1451 | 1013 | 3553 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 10 | NNE 8 | ESE 13 | S 10 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SE 12 | S 15 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 15 | ENE 8 | — | S 15 | E 10 | E 10 | SE 12 |
| kJ | 85 | 37 | 17 | 70 | 60 | 15 | 28 | 14 | 34 | 5 | 150 | 90 | 62 | 51 | 23 | 14 | — | 163 | 17 | 8 | 435 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 8 | S 16 | S 16 | ESE 13 | ESE 13 | S 9 | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | S 15 | S 8 | SSW 20 | SSW 16 | ESE 12 | — | — | — | — | E 10 | — | — | — |
| kJ | 35 | 5 | 5 | 17 | 17 | 6 | 21 | 20 | 4 | 1 | 39 | 53 | 15 | — | — | — | — | 29 | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | NNE 8 | NNE 4 | NNE 5 | NE 7 | NE 7 | NE 7 | NE 8 | — | — | SW 2 | SSW 9 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SSW 9 | S 9 | S 11 | S 12 |
| kJ | — | — | 49 | 37 | 61 | 363 | 357 | 303 | 1220 | — | — | 1 | 1966 | 3018 | 3077 | 2792 | 2451 | 1203 | 1655 | 2806 | 5094 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 19 | 62 | 0 | 8 | 11 | 62 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 51 | 110 | 110 | 51 | 109 | 51 | 35 | 24 | 109 | 51 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Gisborne and Mahia | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
Latest Updates
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Whangara surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Whangara Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Whangara provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Whangara can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Whangara surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Whangara) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Whangara may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Are you planning a holiday in Gisborne and Mahia? If you are looking for accommodation near Whangara, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Gisborne and Mahia, consider staying in Gisborne which is 22 km (14 miles) away.
Nearest