Anse Gaulette Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cooking for Anse Gaulette over the next couple of weeks.

Truth be told, I’m struggling to find a single session worth paddling out for across the entire 16-day window. The forecast is a real heartbreaker – every single row in the data comes back as "poor surf conditions." It’s not like we’re flat; there’s plenty of size and energy, but it’s all getting wrecked by the wind. The water is sitting at 82°F, which is much warmer than normal for this time of year – a solid 4°F above average, so you’ll be comfortable in boardies, but that’s about the only upside.

The pattern is locked in on a persistent SE to SSE wind, blowing fresh to strong, and it’s either cross or cross-onshore for the entire run. That’s going to leave the surface a mess of lumpy chop and cross-chop. The combined swell energy is moderate to strong, ranging from a low of 425 (kilowatt-hours per metre) up to a massive 1912, so there’s no shortage of power in the water. The swell is mostly in the 5 ft to 10 ft range, hitting from the SE and SSE, with periods around 8 to 10 seconds – short-period, wind-driven stuff, not the kind of groundswell that makes this reef sing.

The closest thing to a highlight, and I’m using the term loosely, is the very first slot on Thursday, August 6th, morning. Swell is 10 ft from the SE with a period of 10 seconds and combined energy of 1591. That’s a lot of water moving, but the wind is a strong 25 mph SE cross. It’s going to be a battle of bump and chop. Not beginner territory at all – over 8 ft is expert-only, and this is 10 ft. But for a strong, experienced surfer who doesn’t mind ugly conditions, there’s raw power. The afternoon is similar but drops to 8 ft.

Things don’t improve. The whole first week is a write-off – consistently poor, with the wind never letting up. By the time we get to the second week, the swell drops a bit, but the wind stubbornly sticks around. The only slight change comes on the 17th of August, Monday morning and afternoon, when a long-period swell shows up from the S at 5 ft with a period of 18 and 16 seconds – that’s a very long-period groundswell. The combined energy jumps to 1912 and 1751. Still, the wind is a fresh 19 mph cross-onshore, killing any chance of the glassy, clean conditions this reef needs. Long-period swells can be amazing here, but only if the wind plays nice, which it absolutely doesn’t.

Honestly, there’s no standout. Not one session gets a score above 1 out of 10, and that single 1 is just "marginal." The set-up is so wind-affected that it looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. A blank run like this is a bummer, but it’s not unheard of for this area when the trade winds lock in. We’ll just have to wait for the next change.

Rusty.

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