Hossegor - La Graviere Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Right, grab a coffee, this is a long-range look at the region and it’s a proper tale of two halves. We’ve got La Gravière (Hossegor) on the cards, and the water temperature is running at 76°, which is a full 5° warmer than you’d expect for this time of year – the ocean’s feeling like a bathtub.

The first week is honest-to-goodness flat. From Monday the 17th right through until the evening of Wednesday the 20th, there’s basically nothing to get out of bed for. We’re talking waist-high slop at best, with a combined swell energy barely scraping 64 (64) on Monday morning. It’s a write-off. Even Tuesday the 18th sees glassy conditions but only 2ft of weak, short-period junk. Don’t bother.

Now, Thursday the 20th morning is where it finally stirs. Overnight a new pulse arrives – 4ft from the NW with a very long 11-second period, and the combined energy jumps to 263 (263). The wind is a light cross-offshore from the SSE, so the sets will be clean. It’s only a small window though; by the afternoon the wind swings onshore and it’s gone. Friday the 21st is a frustrating mix of OK swell size (4ft) but with cross-winds and some morning rain. It’s marginal, but not recommended.

Saturday the 22nd actually offers something. The morning sees a clean 3ft from the NW with a light offshore breeze from the East. The energy is moderate at 173 (173). It’s not big, but it’ll be lined up and uncrowded given the recent flat spell. This is the pick of the first week—a small but glassy window for a longboard or a funboard. Sunday the 23rd morning repeats the trick with a clean 2ft and light offshore wind.

The next weekend is where the real story changes. After a flat Monday and Tuesday the 25th, the swell charts start to fire up. Thursday the 27th morning gets a clean 4ft swell (182 energy) with glassy conditions – a nice little reset. But it’s Friday the 28th that starts the warning. The swell builds to 5ft in the morning (431 energy) and hits 8ft by the afternoon (917 energy), but it’s all cross-onshore and messy.

Then comes the stand-out event: Saturday the 29th of August. This is for experts only. The morning delivers a massive 15ft groundswell from the WNW, with a very long 13-second period and combined energy of 6046 (6046). The wind is a light cross-onshore from the SW, but the word is that the swell is predicted to be too big for this break. This is a proper, heavy, big-wave session that will close out the beach entirely. If you’re a charger for the channel, you know what to do, but for 99% of us, it’s a spectator day.

Sunday the 30th drops back to a still-chunky 8ft (1288 energy) with cross-onshore winds, which is marginal and lumpy. Monday the 31st brings a solid 8ft again, but with a fresh 18 mph cross-onshore, it’s a complete mess. The run ends on Tuesday the 1st of September with a still-strong 6ft swell but poor, choppy conditions.

So the highlights? For a clean, small session, Saturday morning the 22nd is your quiet hero. For the big, raw, intimidating power, the morning of Saturday the 29th is the undeniable, though dangerous, stand-out.

Rusty.

Read more