Ōraka / Colac Bay

Colac Bay is the most surfed and most welcoming wave in Southland, a long sandy beach where Foveaux Strait swells fan out across changeable banks that suit everyone from first timers to old hands. The beach break is soft and wally, a forgiving shoulder you can fall off all day, and the banks shift with the seasons so it pays to walk the sand and pick the peak that is working. At the western end of the bay a right-hand point is the prize: it needs a solid swell to start firing but then rewards the wait with long walls that peel down the headland. The whole place is best on a S or SW swell with a N to NW wind blowing offshore, and it works across all tides, though the point shows its best shape as the bigger sets line up. This is genuinely cold subantarctic water, the coldest surf in the country, so warmth is everything.

The bay sits about 12 km west of Riverton on the Southern Scenic Route, roughly 40 minutes from Invercargill, facing out across Foveaux Strait toward Stewart Island on a clear day. This is Ōraka, the place of the chief Raka, and the Takutai o te Tītī marae of the Ōraka-Aparima rūnanga of Ngāi Tahu anchors a settlement that has surfed for generations. A giant surfer statue has greeted arrivals here since 1999, the most explicit declaration of surf culture in the country. With the Colac Bay Tavern, a holiday park and a strong local crew, it is the social heart of southern surfing.

• For the right point at its best, wait for a solid S or SW groundswell and a N to NW offshore, then surf the bigger sets as they line up down the headland; on anything smaller, the beach banks are the smarter call and far more consistent.
• Take time to read the sandbanks before paddling out, because the peak that worked last week may have moved; the best bank often sits where you can see a defined channel running back out to sea.
• Layer up beyond what feels necessary, with a 5/4mm, boots, gloves and a hood in winter and at least boots through summer, because staying warm here is the difference between a long surf and a short one.
• Southland Surf School operates at the bay if you or a travelling partner want a lesson on this forgiving beach, and the Colac Bay Classic comp brings the wider scene together each year.
• Make a day of it: Riverton, 12 km east, has cafes and the Te Hikoi museum, the Longwood Forest sits behind the bay for a walk, and the Colac Bay Tavern handles the post-surf feed.

• This is the coldest water you will surf in New Zealand, so a winter session without boots, gloves and a hood will cut your time in the water short; treat warmth as a safety issue, not a comfort one, and watch for the early numbness that signals it is time to get out.
• The western point only works on a big swell, and when it is that size the sets carry real power and a longer paddle, so know your limit before committing to the headland and let the beach banks do the work on smaller days.
• Banks at the beach shift constantly, so the channels, rips and best peaks move week to week; walk the sand and watch where the water is draining back out before you paddle, especially after a run of big swell.
• There is no lifeguard patrol here, so you are self-reliant: surf with someone, tell a person on shore your plan, and factor in that the nearest real services are back in Riverton.
• Foveaux Strait is exposed and the weather turns fast; a clean offshore morning can blow out by lunchtime, so check the forecast and have a plan for when the wind swings onshore.

Getting there

From Invercargill head out on State Highway 99 through Wallacetown and Riverton, then turn off onto Colac Bay Road or Colac Foreshore Road and follow it down to the beach; it is about 40 minutes all up on the sealed Southern Scenic Route, with Colac Bay sitting roughly 12 km west of Riverton.

Parking

Sealed road in with informal parking right along Colac Foreshore Road beside the beach, so you can pull up close to the sand; the foreshore is exposed to the wind, so park with that in mind.

Toilets & showers

Public toilets are available in the township, with a long drop at the foreshore camping area; hot showers are available to guests at the Colac Bay Tavern & Holiday Park rather than as a free beach rinse, so plan to warm up there or back in Riverton.

Shops, cafes & fuel

The village has the Colac Bay Tavern serving pub meals, wood-fired pizza and the odd live music night, plus a cafeteria-bar, a small shop and a craft shop; there is no reliable fuel in the bay itself, so fill up in Riverton (about 12 km east) or Invercargill, which are also your nearest full grocery and surf supplies.

Accommodation

The Colac Bay Tavern & Holiday Park offers cabins and powered sites next to the pub, and the settlement has many holiday homes and baches available through the usual booking sites; for more choice, Riverton and Invercargill are a short drive away.

Camping

The Colac Bay Tavern & Holiday Park has a well equipped camp kitchen, showers and laundry for tents and campervans. Freedom camping is also permitted on Colac Foreshore Road between the boat ramp and the shelter shed, but for certified self-contained vehicles only, with a maximum of two nights, under the Southland District Council bylaw.