Level 8 - Turtle Rock Walkthrough

This is a walkthrough for the 8th dungeon in The Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening (Remake) for the Nintendo Switch. Use this guide to learn how to reach this dungeon, solve the dungeon's puzzles, and defeat the bosses to complete this dungeon.

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Eagle's Tower	Wind Fish's Egg

Getting to Turtle Rock

Getting to Turtle Rock Objectives

No.	Objective
1	Head to the Hen House, and save Marin on the bridge.
2	Use the secret staircase to head west.
3	Pass through the Flame Fountain using your Mirror Shield.
4	Play Frog's Song of Soul to awaken Turtle Rock.
5	Defeat Turtle Rock and enter the dungeon through the opening behind him.

Finding Turtle Rock

Leave Eagle's Tower, and hop down the ledge (be sure to hold down so you do not fall into the hole). Go through the cave on the left side, and head back toward the house near where you picked up the Bird Key. Walk to the wooden bridge left of the house and Hookshot over to the wooden crate. Here you will see Marin, who reveals that she was put there by monsters. Hookshot to the crate to her left to grab and save her. After this, the owl will come and tell you to head west.

Go down the staircase hidden under the grass here. Heart Piece #25 can be obtained by going down the southern wall here if you did not pick it up before the previous dungeon. Go to the left in this cave, jump down the ledge, and take the stairs here. Hookshot over the gap and emerge from the cave. Back in Tal Tal Mountain Range, there are many falling rocks, as well as mini-moldorms that you will need to watch out for as you make your way up.

Secret Seashell #49

After climbing to the top here, you will see a series of boulders. Lifting the top left boulder from the corner will reveal Secret Seashell #49.

Inventory Upgrade

Just south of the treasure chest on the top of this mountain, there is a boulder that can be lifted to reveal a hidden staircase. Go down it and light the torch to speak with Li'l Devil and receive the third and final item upgrade (Magic Powder, Arrows, or Bombs, whichever you have yet to upgrade).

Continue west and grab the 50 rupees from the chest, then cross the bridge. Hop down the ledge and make your way to the cracked wall, defeating the Like Like and Shrouded Stalfos in the way. Blow up the wall and enter the cave. In this cave, there will be some fire shooting out from the wall, preventing you from moving forward. Use your Mirror Shield to block the fire and walk past it.

Piece of Heart #27

Before getting to the cracked wall, there is a small path that leads to the left. Follow it to the end to pick up Piece of Heart #27.

Secret Seashell #32

After passing the Flame Fountain and emerging, go left and down and you will see some rocks in the ground. Dig in the center with your Shovel to obtain Secret Seashell #32.

After emerging from the cave with fire being shot towards you, left the rock to your right to activate the warp zone here. Continue left, but watch out for the Leevers that will pop up out of the sand. After reaching the far left, you will see two new enemies, called Dactoes. Defeat them, then use your Ocarina to play the Frog's Song of Soul in front of the large dragon shaped rocks here. This will initiate battle with Turtle Rock.

Mini-Boss: Turtle Rock

Turtle Rock will pull its head back and shiver before lashing forward in your direction. Dodge this attack and it will hit its head on the wall, stunning it. This is the prime time to drop a bomb on its head, as your other weapons will not do any damage to it. After successfully landing three bombs, its protective rock will break open, revealing its face.

Despite this, the battle does not really change. Turtle Rock will now lift his head before striking so that you cannot reach him, but after he hits the wall and stuns himself, you can slash away at him with your sword instead now. Repeat this until he is defeated, pick up the fairy he drops, then enter the tunnel where his head previously was.

Turtle Rock Dungeon Walkthrough

Turtle Rock Map and Items

Location on Map	Item
A	20 Rupees
B	50 Rupees
C	Compass
D	Small Key #1
E	Map
F	Stone Beak
G	Small Key #2
H	Trick Treasure Chest
I	Small Key #3
J	Small Key #4
K	Small Key #5
L	50 Rupees
M	Small Key #6
N	Magic Rod
O	Small Key #7
P	Nightmare Key
Q	Secret Medicine

Turtle Rock Objectives

No.	Objective
1	Go left and up and defeat the Blue Hinox. Continue left, down, then left.
2	Defeat the Spike Roller. Obtain the Compass and Small Key #1 from the adjacent rooms.
3	Go two rooms north of the dungeon entrance. Use the moveable block to reach the Map.
4	Bomb the wall here and continue forward, through the underground passage. Emerge and obtain the Stone Beak.
5	Defeat the foes and continue north. Defeat Rover and continue left.
6	Fill in the gaps in the room and obtain Small Key #2.
7	Head back to the lava room with the moving block. Go toward the three center blocks and push the right block out of the way.
8	Continue north, then east. Go through the revolving door. Continue forward and defeat the Gibdos to obtain Small Key #3.
9	Go back a room and head left through the bombable walls. Continue left until reaching the statue with an eye.
10	Shoot the statue's eye and pick up Small Key #4. Go left and push the blocks to obtain Small Key #5 from the chest.
11	Go back and head north. go outside through the stairs, cross the bridge, and re-enter. Defeat the Dodongo Snakes and pick up Small Key #6.
12	Return to the lava room and use the block to right. Bomb the wall and turn the crystal orange.
13	Go to the room right of the eye statue. Climb the stairs and go right, then hookshot across. Go down the stairs.
14	Cross the side-scrolling section and continue to find the Mini-Boss.
15	Defeat Blaino and obtain the Magic Rod.
16	Go to the lava room and take the moving block to the stairs on the bottom right side of the room, then go through the side scrolling section.
17	Defeat Hydrosaur and use the moveable block to fill in the gaps and obtain the Nightmare Key.
18	Go to the far right in the lava room and go up the stairs found in the top right corner. Go through the sidescrolling section.
19	Enter the Nightmare Lair, defeat Hot Head, and retrieve the Thunder Drum.

Compass

After entering Turtle Rock, head straight into the next room and defeat the Vire. You will need to use Roc's feather to jump up and hit him with your sword. Stunning him with the Boomerang will make this much easier. After defeating him, head through the left door that opens up. Defeat the three Ropes and shield the Beamos, then go through the upper door.

Upon entering the next room, you will immediately be greeted by a Blue Hinox. Avoid his grabs and use a combingation of your sword, boomerang, and bombs to take him out. Then go through the left door. Pressing A in front of the object here allows you to move it. It will create new spaces over the empty floor. If you make it loop around the wall so that it fills in all the gaps, a treasure chest will appear with 20 Rupees.

Fill in the gaps so that you have a pathway to the bottom room, then go through it. Take out the Sparks here and obtain 50 Rupees, then continue to the left room.

In the next room we encounter another familiar mini-boss: Spike Roller. His patterns have not changed a bit, so hop over his roller with Roc's Feather and wail on him on the other side until he is defeated. Go into the southern door, and you will spot a treasure chest, although it is being guarded by a Vacuum Mouth. Take it out when it is not pulling you in with a hit from your sword, then open the chest to obtain the Compass.

Small Key #1

Return back to the previous room where you fought the Spike Roller, and this time go north. You will encounter another Vire here, so defeat it. Doing this will make Small Key #1 fall down to the ground. Pick it up, and use Manbo's Mambo to return to the beginning of the dungeon.

Map

From where you fought the first Vire, hop over the lava and go north. You will see another moveable block here that will allow you to creat tiles over the lava. Head towards the cracked wall on the northern wall. Use a bomb to blow up the wall. Before going through, push the top and bottom blocks to your left forward and the center block down to reach the nearby chest. Open it up to receive the Map. Then go through the wall you previously bombed.

Stone Beak

From here, go left and head down the stairs to go through an underground passage. There are many Podoboos here, so be sure to time your jumps so they do not hit you and push you in the lava. Emerge and defeat the three Ropes here to open the north door, and grab the treasure chest containing the Stone Beak before going through it.

Small Key #2

Here you will face yet another familiar foe in the form of Rover. Just like before, pick up his ball and chase him into a corner, then repeatedly throw it at him until he is defeated.

Go into the left room and use the moveable block here to fill in all of the empty spaces. The trick is to continuously hold down the left stick, changing directions before the block has completely moved into the next space, following the path demonstrated in the images here. Filling in the tiles will make Small Key #2 fall to the ground. Pick it up, and continue left.

Small Key #3

Hop over the lava and you will find a trick treasure chest containing a Zol, so open or skip it, then continue left. This room has several pots, two sparks, 10 uses of Magic Powder, and a fairy in the bottom right pot. Take what you need and continue left to the next room, then go up into the next room after that. Use the moveable block to create a path that goes two spaces right and four spaces up, conecting to the three blocks here. Push the right block through the lava, then go forward and unlock the block.

Walk forward and go right. Ignore the Vire, and unlock the door here, then go through. There are four Blade Traps here, and a Red Stalfos. Go past them and use the revolving door to go up a room. Walk around this room and defeat the four Zol, then go through the door that opens. Here there are two Gibdos to face. The easiest way to defeat them is to just throw a bomb and blow up the floor they walk on. Doing so will net you Small Key #3.

Small Key #4

Go back to the previous room, and walk over to the left side wall. While slightly difficult to spot, this wall is indeed cracked, so use a bomb to blow it open. Go through the hole, and emerge in a dark room with two sparks. Hop over to the other side, defeat the Zol, and go through the locked block. You will show up in another dark room. Defeat the rope here, bomb the left side of the south wall, and go through the left door.

Place a bomb on the left side of the south wall, and the center of the left wall, then continue through the left side. Hop over the lava here, then go to the raised block on the bottom-center area of the room. Stand on it, equip your Bow, and shoot the statue in the eye. This will allow you to obtain Small Key #4. Pick it up, and continue into the left room.

Small Key #5

Block the Beamos' blast to stun him. Push the block left of the treasure chest up a space, then push the block under the chest left a space. Open up the treasure chest to obtain Small Key #5. Then go back a room (If you blocked yourself in the room by pushing the blocks in the wrong direction, walk up the stairs and head south, then re-enter the room and go back).

Small Key #6

Head north from the room with the statue. You can defeat the Vire and two Ropes here to open the left door and go through it, then go up the stairs and hookshot to the chest for 50 Rupees. Either way, take the stairs on the north wall here to the outside of Turtle Rock. You can climb up some stairs and obtain Piece of Heart #28. Walk across the bridge here and activate the warp point, then enter the cave to show up back in Turtle Rock.

Now that you are above the Dodongo Snakes, you will want to try and feed them bombs from above. This can be somewhat difficult, but the easiest method is to wait until they come to the bottom left corner and throw a bomb right as they move up a space from the corner. Feed them three bombs each to reveal a treasure chest. Open it up to receive Small Key #6.

Finding the Magic Rod

Warp back to the start of the dungeon, and go up two screens. Move the moving tile up one space and right until it reaches the other side, then walk over the path it makes. Bomb the cracked wall on the far right side of the room, and enter the next room. Once here, hit the switch to turn it orange. Make your way back to the moveable block you just used (you will have to go around, since you cannot cross the lava), and push it so that it lands in between the three center tiles once more. Push the right block and continue north.

Go left, then hop over the lava to go through the second opening that you bombed from the other side (the one just right north of the three Peahats). Climb up the stairs and unlock the block, then continue right. Hookshot to the blocks near the locked block in this room, then open the block and go down the stairs. Time your jumps in the underground passage here so as not to get hit by the jumping Podobos, and climb the right side ladder. Hop down the ledge to the next room and encounter the Mini-Boss.

Mini-Boss: Blaino

Blaino will always face right or left, in your direction. He will jab several times, but he is invulnerable while doing so. Occasionally he will pull his fist back and charge up before releasing a big punch. Dodge it, then slash away at his back or side. If he starts to do a very long windup, be extra careful, as this punch can return you to the start of the dungeon.

Repeat this process a few times and he will be deated, leaving behind a warp zone and a fairy. Pick up the fairy and go through the next room. Open the treasure chest here for the Magic Rod. From here, either warp back to the start, or get the final (optional) small key.

Optional: Small Key #7

Return back through the underground passage. From here, head west until you reach the room with the eye statue that you shot earlier. Go up the stairs and head south through the next room, and hop down the ledge. Use the Magic Rod to light the torches on both sides of the room. This will reveal a treasure chest containing Small Key #7. Go south, then push the block here right. However, will only need this key if you wish to stock up on Secret Medicine before the boss.

Mini-Boss: Hydrosaur

Make your way back to the room with the moving platform and lava again. Move the platform toward the right so you can reach the stairs at the bottom of the room. Go up them and use your Magic Rod to burn the ice blocking your path. Walk into the next room and melt the top row of ice so you can cross to the other side. Emerge and go down the stairs. Then go through the locked door to meet with this dungeon's final Mini-Boss.

As your second battle with Hydrosaur, you should already know what to do. However now, you have less space to work with than before. Simply jump over the monster when it charges at you, the immediately turn around and slash at its back while it is turned. Do this repeatedly until it is defeated and the northern door opens up. Go through it.

Nightmare Key

Here we are faced with one final puzzle, requiring you to push the moveable block and fill in all the empty spaces. Follow the path shown in the pictures to work your way from top left to bottom right. After doing so, a treasure chest with the Nightmare Key will be revealed. Open it up, and head toward the nightmare lair.

Optional: Secret Medicine

You will need to have obtained Small Key #7. From where you picked up the Nightmare Key, go back a room, hop over the lava, then go through the door on the right. Climb up the stairs, then hop down the ledge on the right and enter the next room. Walk past the enemies and continue east, until you reach a locked door. Go through it, hop over the lava, and go up the stairs. Continue forward into the next room, and use your Hookshot to latch on to the treasure chest on the other side. Open it up the receive the Secret Medicine.

Getting to the Nightmare Lair

Warp back to the beginning of the dungeon once more. Head to the large center room with lava and the moving block, and use it to create a path to the right side of the room. Walk over the path to the other side of the room and climb the stairs in the corner here. You will need to melt the ice here so that you can get through to the next room. However, be sure to leave the column of ice that is to the left of the two floating blocks here, as you will need to walk off of it to land in the opening.

In the next room, melt the bottom row of ice, then go under the column of ice blocking your path and melt it. This will allow you to climb the remaining ice and arrive at the ladder. Go down the ladder and arrive in front of the Nightmare Lair. Open it up and go inside.

Turtle Rock Nightmare: Hot Head

Initially Hot Head will emerge from a random part of the lava and then fall back into it, splashing lava in an X-shape right before submerging. If you stand directly in front of his face, or behind/to the side of it, the lava will land to your sides so you can easily avoid it. Shoot him with the Magic Rod when he emerges, which will temporarily cause the flames that engulf his head to cease. While he flies around the room, continue shooting him with your Magic Rod.

After enough hits, his head will split at the sides, revealing its spiky inside. He will continue to emerge and submerge from the lava, but at a much faster rate now. Continue shooting him with your Magic Rod. After enough hits he will perish, but not before warning Link that he is also part of the dream.

Hop over the ledges and pick up the Heart Container. Then, go into the next room and pick up the eighth and final instrument, the Thunder Drum, to complete the dungeon.

Link's Awakening Related Guides

List of All Dungeons and Story Walkthrough

All Dungeon Walkthroughs

Level 1 - Tail Cave	Level 2 - Bottle Grotto
Level 3 - Key Cavern	Level 4 - Angler's Tunnel
Level 5 - Catfish's Maw	Level 6 - Face Shrine
Level 7 - Eagle's Tower	Level 8 - Turtle Rock
Color Dungeon	Wind Fish's Egg