Photos: Big bore tides in Alaska's Turnagain Arm expected to draw surfers

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Surfers and paddleboarders wait for the bore tide near Bird point on June 4, 2012.

The biggest bore tide of the 2013 season will hit Turnagain Arm in Southcentral Alaska on Monday, coinciding with the so-called "Supermoon," when the lunar orb is closest to Earth for the year. That's according to official bore tide schedule posted by Chugach State Park. But whether this moon-boosted phenomenon arrives as an epic mondo wave with a churning face suitable for surfing -- or as a smaller white-capping roller -- depends on the vagaries of wind.

With Minus 4.4-feet tide forecasted for Turnagain Arm, the bore tide is expected to pass Bird Point near 5:32 p.m. Another big bore could hit Tuesday, with large but more moderate tides predicted for Sunday and Wednesday.

"It can vary up to 30 minutes or more depending on wind speed and direction," the Chugach park primer warns. "Check the wind. If the wind is blowing from Portage, the bore will be larger but a bit late. Wind from Anchorage brings earlier, smaller bores."

The bore that sloshed Turnagain just before 5 p.m. on June 5 last year brought out a pack of adventurers, each hoping to catch some white froth for a ride up the arm.

You can also check out Alaska Dispatch's bore-tide surfing video from 2012.