Turtles Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, let’s get real. It’s a quiet start to the 16-day window for the Turtles region. The first few days are a write-off. Wednesday the 26th to Friday the 28th of August serve up nothing but onshore junk, with a near gale screaming on Wednesday. You wouldn’t even paddle out. The combined energy is moderate but wasted – 608 in the water but blown to bits.

Saturday the 29th of August drops right off. Tiny knee-high leftovers, energy down to 65, and clean conditions but no push. From Sunday the 30th into Tuesday the 1st of September, it flatlines. Zero energy for days. A proper gap.

Then we get a pulse. Wednesday the 2nd of September sees a massive spike in energy – 5773 on Wednesday morning – but the cross-onshore wind ruins it. That’s heavy, messy swell, 10 ft to 13 ft, but it’s a washing machine. Not for paddling, maybe the kite crew would have a look.

Now, here’s the standout. Thursday the 3rd of September afternoon. This is the best of the entire run. The swell settles to 12 ft from the WNW, with a nice long period of 12 seconds – proper groundswell. The wind turns light, cross-off, and the surf is clean. The combined energy is still pumping at 3471. This is for experienced surfers only – over 8 ft is expert territory. Turtles is a reef break, fairly exposed to the swell, and the optimum direction is N, so this WNW swell is angled in nicely. It’s gonna be a beautiful, powerful, clean afternoon. Crowds are possible here sometimes, so expect company.

The 4th of September Friday keeps it going but smaller. 8 ft to 7 ft from the WNW, clean with a light offshore from the east. Energy drops to 1275 then 910. Still very good, especially for the more confident intermediate surfer.

Saturday the 5th of September morning is still surfable at 4 ft, clean, but it’s fading. The 7th of September Monday morning brings a sudden spike to 8 ft from the NNW with a short period of 7 seconds and glassy conditions – energy at 1319. That’s a short-period groundswell, so it’ll be a bit walled up at the reef, but glassy offshore is a rare treat. Worth a paddle.

After that, through the 8th to the 10th of September, there’s consistent 7 ft to 8 ft swell from the NW or WNW, clean, but the period drops to 8 or 9 seconds. The energy is moderate to strong (600-1000), but the quality is only marginal. It’s surfable, but not the good stuff.

The water temperature is sitting at 84°, which is bang on average for this time of year. Nothing weird there.

So, if you’re picking a session, Thursday the 3rd of September afternoon is the one. Big, clean, powerful. Monday the 7th of September morning is a close second for the glassy conditions. The rest is either flat, blown out, or just average.

Rusty.

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