Best time to surf Castlepoint

The best time to surf at Castlepoint is July–September, with waves of about 1.5 m and water around 13°C.

Castlepoint, Wairarapa, New Zealand

Sports: Surfing

Best time to go: July–September

Castlepoint is a small holiday village on the Wairarapa coast, about 65 km north-east of Masterton, an hour's drive on a sealed but winding road, and about two and a half hours from Wellington. A limestone reef runs out to the point, where the lighthouse has stood since 1913, and together with Castle Rock (Mātira) to the south it shelters a lagoon of calm water. The village has a store, a seasonal café, a campground near the beach, a boat ramp, public toilets, and parking by the lagoon and on the beach. A surf life saving club patrols the beach in the peak summer months.

Castlepoint Beach, in front of the village, is a sandy beach break partly sheltered by the reef; it is inconsistent but suits beginners when there are waves, and is cleanest with a westerly wind. The reef breaks need more swell. Slippery is an exposed, fairly consistent reef that breaks left, best in a south-east swell with a north-west wind around mid tide, and easily spoiled by onshore wind. The Gap, by Castle Rock, has waves over reef and sand at low to mid tide in an east-south-east swell with a west-north-west wind, and gets crowded.

The reef is dangerous: waves wash over it even in calm weather and people have been swept off it, so keep off the outer reef when the sea is up. Slippery has strong rips. Help is far away on this coast, so surf with others. The water is about 12 °C in August and 18 °C in February: a 5/4 or 4/3 in winter, a 3/2 in summer. Wairarapa Hospital in Masterton is about an hour away.

Month by month at Castlepoint

January: 9 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 11 knots, waves 0.5 m, water 18°C, air 20°C (nights 14°C), 26 sunny days, 15 rainy days
February: 9 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 11 knots, waves 0.5 m, water 18°C, air 21°C (nights 14°C), 23 sunny days, 11 rainy days
March: 11 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 11 knots, waves 0.8 m, water 17°C, air 19°C (nights 12°C), 27 sunny days, 12 rainy days
April: 7 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 10 knots, waves 1.1 m, water 16°C, air 18°C (nights 11°C), 24 sunny days, 10 rainy days
May: 7 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 9 knots, waves 1.2 m, water 15°C, air 16°C (nights 9°C), 23 sunny days, 10 rainy days
June: 8 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 10 knots, waves 1.4 m, water 14°C, air 14°C (nights 8°C), 20 sunny days, 13 rainy days
July: 9 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 10 knots, waves 1.5 m, water 13°C, air 13°C (nights 7°C), 20 sunny days, 13 rainy days
August: 11 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 11 knots, waves 1.6 m, water 12°C, air 13°C (nights 7°C), 22 sunny days, 14 rainy days
September: 14 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 13 knots, waves 1.5 m, water 13°C, air 15°C (nights 8°C), 24 sunny days, 12 rainy days
October: 16 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 13 knots, waves 1.3 m, water 14°C, air 16°C (nights 9°C), 23 sunny days, 13 rainy days
November: 13 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 1 m, water 15°C, air 19°C (nights 12°C), 26 sunny days, 14 rainy days
December: 13 windy days (15+ knots), average wind 12 knots, waves 0.8 m, water 17°C, air 21°C (nights 14°C), 26 sunny days, 15 rainy days