Shipwreck Bay / Northlands / New Zealand

This is one of the most well-known and popular surfing beaches in the northern part of New Zealand. It is about four hours drive from Auckland, and is suitable for all surfers whether they are beginners or have years of experience.

What you have here is a large, sandy, crescent shaped beach that is pretty quiet during the week but soon gets crowded at weekends.  Temperatures are subtropical and range from a low in the winter of about 17° C to a maximum of about 25° C in summer, so shorts or a wetsuit will be adequate most of the time.

Working best at low or mid tide, the swell here starts at about 1 m and holds up to a maximum of about 2.5 m. You need to be here when the wind is blowing from the south-east and the swell is coming from the west, south-west or south. It is a point break, only to the left, and the waves here are fast, hollow and fairly powerful. Length is much more than any of the nearby sites, with even a normal day giving between 200 and 300 m and a good day often exceeding 400 or even 500 m.

There are a couple of campsites in the immediate vicinity, and plenty of choice for other accommodation in the nearby town of Ahipara.  There are no facilities on the beach, although parking is possible pretty close to the shore.

Mind the undertows here, and be careful of the rocks by the break.