THE SURF IN THE CENTRAL ATOLLS
Since our first central atolls boat trip on Hamathi for Oxbow in June 2004, quite a few boats have been following our wake. Still, few boats cruise the Centrals on our ‘itinerary trip’ system: Malé to Laamu atoll or Laamu atoll to Malé. On a 10 day trip, groups usually interact 50% of the time with another boat and rarely with 3 boats. The crowd factor remains fairly low, lower than Gaafu Dhaalu and way lower than North Male Atoll.
In the Centrals, the typical wave is a long right averaging 2-6ft. After more than 60 trips, we have listed 15 potential spots (5 major) located on 5 different atolls. Count 5 lefts for 10 rights and because of predominant winds, expect 40%lefts / 60% rights in the dry season (March-April) and 20% /80% the rest of the season. Those who prefer ultra-clean waves with sunny weather and ideal cruising conditions, best is to come before early May.
Spots are fairly shallow but coral bottoms are mainly flat and not dangerous if you don’t dive head first. Each SW monsoon season gets a handful of 8-10ft conditions, most of the surf being then 4-8ft (while 2-6ft in the dry season). The SW monsoon experiences heaps of thunderstorms with 2-3 hours per day being pretty unpleasant. But generally speaking, it’s always warm, there is always enough sunshine to burn your skin despite overcast skies. Monsoon winds are moderate (unlike tradewinds) and very irregular.
