Halawa Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, I’m gonna be straight with you: there’s a whole lot of nothing happening for a long stretch here. Halawa (reef/river) is the only break on the cards, and for the first two weeks of this forecast, it’s pretty much a write-off. Starting from Thursday, 20 August right through to Wednesday, 2 September, every single session is rated as poor surf conditions. The wind is mostly cross or cross-on, fresh and lumpy, with swell heights bouncing between tiny 0.7 ft wind slop and messy 6 ft stuff with short, weak periods. The combined energy is weak to moderate at best, but it’s all junky. There’s a big gap of no good surf until we hit the end of August and into early September.

The water temperature is sitting at 80°F with a tiny anomaly of -0.18°F, so pretty much average for this time of year – nothing to write home about.

Now, the one standout that actually has some pulse happens on Thursday, 3 September. That morning, the wind goes glassy – calm, zero wind from the ESE – and the swell is a clean 5 ft from the ENE with a period of 8 seconds. Combined energy is moderate. It’s not huge, but it’s clean. By the afternoon, the wind turns light offshore from the SSE, keeping it tidy with 5 ft waves. This is the best on offer: Halawa with a forgiving 5-5 ft, ENE swell, glassy to light offshore wind. It’s a reef/river setup, and it’s exposed to the swell, so it’ll hold. The break is fairly consistent, but crowds are possible here sometimes. This is a Thursday, so it might be a bit quieter. For this one, the optimum swell direction is NNW, and we’re getting ENE, so it’s not a perfect match, but the clean conditions make up for it.

After that, Friday, 4 September, the wind swings back cross-shore and the quality drops again – marginal at best, then poor. So really, the only window worth paddling out is that Thursday, 3 September.

If you’re an expert, the end of the run from 31 August to 2 September has some bigger swell – 7 ft to 8 ft from the ENE with long periods of 12-13 seconds and very strong energy. But the wind is cross-on and lumpy, so it’s more of a mess than a session. That’s big, powerful groundswell, but with onshore wind, it’s a battle. Might be more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing, honestly.

So, to sum it up: wait until Thursday, 3 September for a clean, glassy morning at Halawa with 5 ft, ENE swell, and light offshore wind in the afternoon. That’s your shot. The rest is a long, dusty gap.

Rusty

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