Guidel Plages Surf Forecast and Surf Report

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

First thing to note: the water’s sitting at 65°F, which is pretty much bang on average for this time of year, so no surprises there.

To be brutally honest, the next week and a half is a bit of a write-off for quality paddle surfing. The pattern is dominated by moderate to strong onshore and cross-onshore winds, with swell heights bouncing around in the 5ft to 8ft range, but the wind is just ruining any chance of clean waves. There’s a real lumpy, choppy mess out there. The combined energy ramps up significantly, hitting 789 (moderate energy) on Saturday the 29th morning and even a whopping 1552 (strong energy) on Monday the 31st morning, but with the wind howling onshore, it’s a churned-up, blown-out beast. That’s not surfer-friendly; it’s more of a kite session.

The only real glimmer, and I mean a tiny one, comes on Wednesday afternoon, the 26th of August. The wind goes light and cross-offshore from the east at 9 mph, the swell is a tiny 2ft from the SSW with a short 6-second period, and the energy is a weak 47. The report says “clean,” so it’s glassy-looking, but it’s barely surfable. It’s an option for a longboard or a float, but don’t expect much punch.

There is one standout that catches my eye, but it’s a long way off. On Tuesday the 8th of September, the afternoon shows a 6ft swell from the WSW with a very long 14-second period, and the combined energy jumps to 1573 (strong). The wind is onshore from the WSW, but the report says “marginal surf forecast or questionable tide conditions.” That long-period groundswell is the kind of energy that can really wrap around points and reefs, but Guidel Plages is a beach and reef setup. A 14-second period is great for power and shape, but at a beach break, it can be a bit straight and tricky to line up. The onshore wind is a bummer, but if the tide lines up, there could be a few clean ones. It’s a promising but uncertain one for the second week.

So, for the next 16 days, the best on offer is a toss-up between the tiny, clean but weak session on the 26th of August for a beginner, or rolling the dice on the long-period swell on the 8th of September. Nothing here is a screaming standout, but that’s coastal life sometimes.

Rusty.

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