Belle Ile Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, let’s have a look at what Belle Ile has in store for us over the next couple of weeks. Honestly, looking at the whole run, the picture is a bit of a mixed bag. There’s a stretch of tiny, clean surf right now, then some proper winter-sized bombs roll in, but with winds that’ll make a mess of ‘em for a paddle surfer. The standout moment is actually lurking in the second week, so don’t lock your boards away just yet.

Straight up, the first few days are small but workable if you’re keen for a longboard or a foiler. The water temp is sitting at 68 °F, which is a touch warmer than average for the time of year, so a steamer might be a bit overkill.

Saturday morning, the 22nd of August, has a small 2 ft W swell wrapping in with a period around 8 seconds. It’s clean with a moderate offshore breeze from the ENE, but the wave energy is weak at 96, so it’s more about getting wet than getting barrelled. By the afternoon, the wind goes glassy, which is beautiful, but the swell drops to 2 ft.

Sunday the 23rd is a write-off for paddling. A strong 25 mph offshore wind from the ENE makes it clean but just too hard to paddle into that 1 ft bump. The following Monday and Tuesday aren’t much chop either—mostly poor conditions with onshore or cross-shore winds and tiny swell.

A bit of energy shows up on Wednesday the 26th with the swell bumping to 4 ft from the WSW, but the period is a short 7 seconds and it’s a cross-onshore mess with a chop you could chew on. Thursday the 27th is where it gets serious—a solid 10 ft W groundswell with a 10-second period rolls in, but it’s onshore and choppy. This one’s for experts only, and if you’ve got a kite, that’s where the fun’s at. The energy is strong (1878).

The end of the first week, Friday the 28th, sees massive 16 ft to 18 ft W swells, but with 25 mph cross-onshore winds, it’s a washing machine. Saturday the 29th is still huge (10 ft), but the wind improves to a moderate 12 mph offshore from the W, so that morning window is for fearless experts only.

Now, here’s the real highlight. After a long, grovelly week or so, the first standout arrives on Tuesday morning, the 1st of September. Belle Ile is fairly consistent as a beginner-friendly spot, but this day is a sleeper. Swell is a small 3 ft from the W, period is short at 8 seconds, but the wind turns cross-off from the NNE at just 3 mph. It will be glassy clean. The energy is weak at 119, but for a clean, cruisy session with hardly anyone out, this is the pick for the intermediate crew.

The second standout is Wednesday the 2nd of September, morning session. A solid 8 ft WSW swell rolls in with a 9-second period. The wind is a clean cross-off from the ENE at 9 mph. The energy is strong (1197), but that size is right on the edge for intermediates—definitely one for the experienced. This is the best wave quality of the whole forecast for paddlers.

After that, it gets messy again. A big 10 ft W groundswell hits on Thursday the 3rd and 4th with onshore winds, and a long 12-second period on the 3rd means it’ll be walled up on the beach but might find a corner on a reef if you’re clever. The rest of the run fades: Saturday the 5th has a dropping 8 ft WNW swell but choppy conditions, and Sunday the 6th is back to ankle-biters with onshore wind.

So, in a nutshell: the next ten days are either too small or too messy for most, but keep an eye on Tuesday 1st for a clean, small session, and Wednesday 2nd morning for the best proper waves. After that, the forecast gets uncertain.

Rusty.

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