How to shiny hunt using Surfing in Pokémon Crystal.
Surfing in circles on water to trigger wild battles.
Odds with charm
1 / 8,192
Odds no charm
1 / 8,192
Per encounter
~12s
Expected hunt
27.3 hours
How the hunt works
Surf out onto the water route with the best rate for your target and move in a continuous circle. Water tables are usually short, so the target percentage is often much higher than in grass.
The base rate in Pokémon Crystal is 1 in 8,192. There is no Shiny Charm in this game, so the base rate is the best you can get.
Tips
- •Sea routes often have one dominant species — check the table before committing.
Pokémon you can find with Surfing in Crystal
21 species, sorted by best encounter rate.
| Pokémon | Best rate | Levels | Locations |
|---|---|---|---|
 Psyduck | 60% | 5–24 | 3 |
 Poliwag | 60% | 4–44 | 9 |
 Poliwhirl | 60% | 10–44 | 9 |
 Tentacool | 60% | 15–39 | 21 |
 Slowpoke | 60% | 10–24 | 3 |
 Grimer | 60% | 15–24 | 1 |
 Horsea | 60% | 15–24 | 3 |
 Goldeen | 60% | 4–39 | 12 |
 Seaking | 60% | 10–39 | 12 |
 Magikarp | 60% | 5–24 | 8 |
 Wooper | 60% | 15–19 | 3 |
 Golduck | 30% | 10–44 | 4 |
 Tentacruel | 30% | 20–39 | 23 |
 Marill | 30% | 20–29 | 3 |
 Quagsire | 30% | 14–29 | 7 |
 Slowbro | 10% | 20–24 | 1 |
 Muk | 10% | 15–19 | 1 |
 Seadra | 10% | 20–24 | 1 |
 Gyarados | 10% | 15–19 | 1 |
 Dratini | 10% | 10–14 | 1 |
 Mantine | 10% | 20–24 | 1 |