Tunnels Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what we’ve got coming up.

It’s a bit of a slow start, to be honest. The first couple of days are on the small side and the conditions are just okay, not really worth getting too excited about. But if you’ve got some patience, there’s a proper pulse of swell heading our way early next week that’ll wake things up proper.

The standout window is Monday, September 7th. We’re looking at a solid 7ft south-west groundswell, and the period is a nice long 14 seconds, which is proper long-period energy. That kind of swell has real push and shape, and at Tunnels (Big Island) it’ll wrap in beautifully. The wind swings offshore on Monday afternoon, light and clean, and the combined swell energy is a strong 2534 (moderate wave energy). This is the pick of the whole outlook – for experienced surfers, that’s going to be pumping. Keep in mind, with a long period like that, it’ll be a bit more lined up and the sets will have some time between them, making the paddle out a bit easier. The water is sitting at 81°, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year.

Leading up to that, Saturday and Sunday (Sept 5-6) have some waist to chest-high swell, but it’s mostly cross-offshore winds and the scores are low – it’s not going to be clean or powerful enough to be worth chasing. The combined energy on Saturday is 748 (moderate) and Sunday drops to 569 (moderate).

After Monday’s peak, Tuesday (Sept 8) still has a decent 8ft swell in the morning, but that’s pushing into the too-big-for-beginners zone, and the wind is cross-off from the south. It’ll be a bit chunky and not as clean as Monday. The combined energy is still high at 1922 (moderate wave energy), but the quality drops off.

From Wednesday (Sept 9) onwards, the swell backs right off. We’re looking at waist-high or smaller, with mostly cross-off trades. The combined energy drops to 419 (moderate) and keeps falling. The period stays long, so you might find a clean little wave on a reef or point, but it’s marginal at best.

There’s a long stretch of small, poor surf from the 10th right through to the 14th of September. The combined energy dips into the low hundreds and even down to 99 (weak energy) – that’s a flat spell. Honestly, that run is pretty dry.

Things might start to trickle back up around the 15th and 16th, with some knee to waist-high swell and a bit more period, but it’s nothing special. The wind is still tradey and cross-off, so it’ll be clean but tiny.

If you’re a beginner, Monday the 7th is going to be a bit much at 7ft, but Sunday the 6th at 4ft might be okay if you’re keen. For everyone else, Monday afternoon is the session to circle.

This is Rusty, signing off.

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