Tengan Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Tengan over the next couple of weeks. Gotta be straight with you, mate—this stretch is looking pretty grim overall.

The only game in town is Tengan, a reef break, and for the entire 16-day window, the conditions are mostly blown out and messy. The water temp is sittin’ around 84°, which is bang on average for this time of year, so nothin’ wild there. The combined swell energy (131) kicks off weak on the 28th of August, and while there are a few pulses of more moderate energy (like 279 and 830), the wind just won’t play ball.

Let’s walk through it. From Friday 28 August right through to the end of the first week, it is a write-off. Onshore and cross-onshore winds from the SE and NE, mostly fresh breezes, just junk. The swell bumps up a bit on Monday 31 August—about 7 ft from the E with a period of 10 seconds, and the combined energy hits 830 (moderate)—but it’s buried under a strong cross-onshore and messy as a dog’s breakfast. There’s no saving that.

Thursday 3 September sees a shift with cross-offshore winds from the NW, and things get clean, but the swell drops to a tiny 4 ft from the E, period 10 seconds. Surfable but ordinary. The best of a bad bunch might be Friday morning 4 September—clean, gentle offshore wind from the W, 4 ft from the E, period 9 seconds. The combined energy is just 177 (weak), so it’s small and weak, but at least it’s clean and you won’t be fighting the wind. Crowds are only *sometimes* a problem at Tengan, so you could get a few little ones to yourself. Don’t expect much.

Monday 8 September around lunchtime—here’s a dark horse. Swell jacks up to about 7 ft from the NW, period 8 seconds, but the wind is screaming offshore from the W at 25 mph. Combined energy is 521 (moderate), good power. Problem is, that strong offshore wind will make it a battle to get out—hard to paddle into—and the period is short, so it’ll be lumpy and bowl-y. This one is for experienced surfers only. If you’ve got the paddle strength, it might offer a few steep walls.

After that, the rest of the second week fades back into weak, cross-onshore junk. The 12th of September sees 6 ft from the N, but the wind is ENE at 12 mph, choppy and messy. No standout.

So if I’m calling it: the best on offer is the Friday 4 September morning session—it’s clean, small, and friendly. The Monday 8 September lunchtime is the big-swell, expert-only challenge, but it’s a gamble. Overall, this is a tough stretch. For a reef break that’s inconsistent anyway, a blank run like this isn’t surprising. Forecasts can change, but right now, don’t get your hopes up.

- Rusty

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