Capbreton - La Piste Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you: if you’re looking at Capbreton - La Piste over the next 16 days, you’re going to want to keep your expectations low. The whole window is a flat spell, plain and simple. There’s no real surf on offer, so we’re talking about a long gap from now right through to the end of the forecast. The swell is tiny, the energy is weak, and the conditions are mostly messy.

Kicking off from Friday, 31 July, it’s a sad story. We’ve got a tiny 2 ft swell from the NW with a short period of 8 seconds, and a cross-on breeze from the NW at 6 mph. The combined energy is a measly 57, and it’s just poor. Nothing to ride. That pattern holds through the weekend. Saturday, 1 August, is still 2 ft to 3 ft, short period, cross-on wind, and the wave energy is barely ticking over at 52 to 72. Sunday, 2 August, is the same sad story – onshore wind, 3 ft at best, sloppy.

Moving into the new week, Monday, 3 August, the swell drops to 1 ft with a 10-second period, but it’s onshore and rainy. Energy is down to 45. Tuesday, 4 August, is more of the same – 1 ft, weak energy in the 30s and 40s. Wednesday, 5 August, brings a brief moment of calm: the wind goes glassy from the NNE at 3 mph in the morning, but the swell is only 2 ft with an 8-second period and the energy is a puny 40. It looks clean but there’s nothing to push you. The afternoon gets choppy again.

The whole first week is a write-off. The second week doesn’t offer any hope either. From 7 August onward, the swell never gets above 3 ft, and most days it’s smaller. The energy is stuck in the double digits or low three digits, peaking at 99 on the 8th of August but still with poor surf conditions. The wind is often cross-on or onshore, and the rare glassy moments (like the morning of 9 August, 11 August, and 15 August) are paired with a flat 1 ft to 2 ft swell. The water temperature is about average for the time of year, so no surprises there.

The only break in the radar is La Piste itself, an advanced spot that’s fairly consistent but needs a solid W swell to work. Right now, the swell direction is NW or WNW, which isn’t its optimum, and the size is laughable. Even when the wind is clean, the waves are just too small. This is a stretch where the beach is likely more interesting for a picnic than a paddle.

Hang in there, it tends not to stay this flat forever. Forecasts can change. But for now, leave the boards at home.

Rusty

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