The once-thriving surf bar at Whangapoua, famous for its powerful waves and uncrowded breaks, has vanished, leaving local surfers longing for the good old days. But David Speir, a local veteran surfer, believes there’s hope to bring back the iconic surf break.
Speaking on Aotea FM’s morning show with Tim Higham, Speir described the dramatic changes at Whangapoua Estuary that wiped out the bar in 2019. “Unfortunately, there has been a long-term process of infill that reached a tipping point in 2019, dramatically changing the wave form on the bar and essentially eliminating the consistent surf break we knew,” he said.
Speir explained what’s happening is a breakdown of the bar’s natural cycle: “The Bar has never done what it’s done in the last five years. The sand motor has now essentially collapsed.” The disruption means the sand no longer replenishes the bar.
Despite the dire situation, Speir is optimistic. “We are only talking about sand, and it’s movable stuff,” he pointed out. The sands, shaped by wave and wind action, could potentially be restored to revive the estuary and its beloved surf break, he thinks.
Speir suggests mirroring successful restoration projects like Mangawhai, where community efforts turned the tide against ecological damage. “They showed that, yes, if you move things back to where it was and you maintain the channels and ensure sufficient depths and subsequent water flow, you can put things back.” he told Higham.
Deposits known as ‘Holocene sands’, carried from the central North Island through the Thames basin, and shaped by waves and wind, once maintained the surf break, but according to Speir, it’s not happening anymore.
The restoration won’t be easy or cheap, and will require a strong community effort, especially with the involvement of mana moana, whose kai gathering areas have been hit hard, Speir concedes.
“We’re going to have to have a big community conversation… to see whether we are up for it—it won’t be cheap—it’ll push the boundaries I imagine,” he acknowledged.
Plans are in place to further assess the restoration’s feasibility with expert advice from coastal geomorphology and estuarine ecology specialists. If successful, Ōkiwi could once again enjoy the bustling surf scene that made it a local treasure.
