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Level 7/10

Shipwreck Bay

Ahipara, New Zealand
🌀Strong rips🚶Difficult access🏝️Remote

Shipwreck Bay is New Zealand's remote reward—a long left point break at the end of Ninety Mile Beach in the far north that can produce rides lasting three minutes or more. The journey here requires commitment: a 4WD or lengthy beach walk through one of the world's most pristine stretches of sand. But that isolation preserves something increasingly rare: genuine solitude in world-class waves. The main left and the Peaks section further out both light up when distant groundswells arrive from the Tasman, offering the kind of soul-surfing experience that defined the sport before crowds and cameras.

3-Day Forecast
Today
30
32
Poor
2.0m
@15s
27km/h
Tue
31
53
Fair
3.8m
@17s
35km/h
Wed
1
34
Poor
3.7m
@16s
20km/h
+7
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Today's Conditions

Swell
2.0m
W(274°)
Score: 23/25
Period
15s
Long period groundswell
Score: 25/25
Wind
27km/h
WNW(284°)
Score: 0/25
Weather
21°C
0.0mm69%
Windswell Component
1.2mWNW@4s
Secondary Swell
0.9mSW
Forecast Confidence
100%
Sources: open-meteo-marine, open-meteo-weather
Best Session
afternoon
AM: 28 km/h W|PM: 28 km/h WNW
Similar wind — afternoon has better tide for this spot
Low tide at 2pm (-0.8m)

Location & Conditions

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0°45°90°135°180°225°270°315°NESW
Swell
Wind
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Showing forecast for today

Tide Times

1:38 am
Low tide - -0.65m
7:52 am
High tide - 1.43m
2:08 pm
Low tide - -0.77m
8:16 pm
High tide - 1.32m
Times shown in spot-local time.

Strike Score Breakdown

32
Poor
Components
Swell Direction2/25
Swell Size23/25
Swell Period25/25
Wind0/25
Raw Score50/100
Adjustments
🌊💨 Windswell-3
⚠️ Weak Component-15
Adjusted Score32/100
Confidence
Multiplier×1.00
Final Score32

Spot Details

Swell Requirements

Optimal direction
SW (220°)
Direction range
200° - 260°
Size range
0.5m - 2.5m
Ideal size
1.9m
Height multiplier
0.97×
Ideal period
14s+

Wind Requirements

Optimal direction
S (180°)
Offshore range
140° - 220°

Tide Requirements

Optimal tide
low
Optimal range
0.2m - 1.2m

Water temp

18°C

Wetsuit

3/2mm fullsuit

Difficulty

7/10

Crowd level

3/10

👥 Autumn Break (Apr 4Apr 19) — expect extra crowds

Access: 4WD required or long beach walk from Ahipara. 20km from Kaitaia Airport.

Best Season

Peak: May-Oct

Secondary: Mar, Apr, Nov

Winter best (Oct peak). Receives distant groundswells.

Getting There

Airport
KAT
Drive time
30 min
Data quality
verified

Strike Log

Community Discussion