Black Rock
Surf spot · Cook Islands
Is it worth the trip?
42Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Tue 3: 7 ft swell at 9 s, 4 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Tue 3 · 62 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 758kJ
- Wind
- ESE 21 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Wed 4 · 47 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 459kJ
- Wind
- ESE 19 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Thu 5 · 28 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 355kJ
- Wind
- ESE 16 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Fri 6 · 34 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft13 shollow
- Energy
- 494kJ
- Wind
- ESE 17 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Sat 7 · 42 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft11 shollow
- Energy
- 504kJ
- Wind
- E 18 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Sun 8 · 34 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 235kJ
- Wind
- ESE 15 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Mon 9 · 14 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft14 shollow
- Energy
- 77kJ
- Wind
- ESE 15 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Mon 257, fair
- Tue 362, good
- Wed 447, fair
- Thu 528, too small
- Fri 634, too small
- Sat 742, too small
- Sun 834, too small
- Mon 914, too small
- Tue 1022, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
- Offshore: SEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 4–17 ftof swell
- Water 26 °Cno wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 57, fair | 9 ft10 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 1,467kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 23 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 62, good | 7 ft9 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 758kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 21 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 47, fair | 6 ft8 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 459kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 19 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 28, too small | 5 ft8 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 355kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 16 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 34, too small | 4 ft13 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 494kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 17 knots, offshore | 23°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 42, too small | 5 ft11 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 504kJ | offshorewind from the east, 18 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 34, too small | 5 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 235kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 15 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 14, too small | 2 ft14 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 77kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 15 knots, offshore | 23°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 22, too small | 3 ft8 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 109kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 13 knots, offshore | 23°C |
Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More
Tide
- Mon 2 NovHigh 01:37 +0.3 mLow 08:05 −0.3 mHigh 14:15 +0.3 mLow 20:30 −0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 02:44 +0.3 mLow 09:10 −0.3 mHigh 15:23 +0.3 mLow 21:47 −0.2 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 04:00 +0.2 mLow 10:20 −0.2 mHigh 16:35 +0.3 mLow 23:06 −0.3 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Map
the spot and its town
Black Rock on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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More surf near here
1 place
- Motutapu 11.3 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Black Rock
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (310°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (130°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 4–17 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 13). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 25°C in July, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 28°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Nikao, 1.7 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 6 dive sites.
Water about 26°C: no wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,190–US$2,290 each
about US$1,190–US$2,290 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food, board and wetsuit.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to RAR, estimated from distance and season, changing at HNL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$657–US$1,370 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$20–US$33 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$201–US$328 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$221–US$415 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$1,190–US$2,290 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: 3 towns
3 min by car · 13 places to stay
About Nikao its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Avarua on Booking.com
5 min by car · 5 places to stay
- Beds in Muri on Booking.com
20 min by car · 33 places to stay
Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 22h 50m
About 22h 50m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → RAR, changing at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), then 20 min by road
Flights ORD → RAR on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.