Le Petit Train Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s on the table for the next couple of weeks at Le Petit Train.

We’ve got a bit of a slow start, and honestly, the first week doesn’t offer much to get excited about. The overall pattern is pretty flat and messy for a while. From today, Thursday the 6th, right through until the end of the first week, the surf is small and the winds are mostly cross-onshore or onshore, making for choppy and poor conditions. There are a couple of brief windows where things turn glassy, but the swell is tiny, so it’s really just for the most patient grom or someone happy to glide around on a foamie. We’re talking wave heights barely reaching 2ft with weak energy readings around 49, and short periods of 6 seconds. Not exactly going to get the heart racing.

The morning of Friday the 7th sees a glassy surface with a slight air wind from the SW, but at 2ft and a period of 6 seconds, it’s just ordinary. The same goes for the morning of Sunday the 9th, with glassy conditions again on a 1ft, 10-second period swell. That long period gives the wave a bit more push, but the size is still tiny. For a few mornings around the 12th and 13th we get more glassy spells, but the swell never gets above 2ft. It’s pretty slim pickings.

Then we hit a gap of a couple of days with nothing worth recommending. Things look like they might finally pick up around Monday the 17th of August. On the Monday morning we see a jump to 4ft from the WNW with a period of 7 seconds, but it’s onshore. The afternoon gets a bit more size at 6ft but the cross-onshore wind jumps to 25 km/h, making it messy. That’s probably too lumpy to be fun.

The real standout of the whole forecast might just be the morning of Tuesday the 18th of August. We get a solid 6ft of swell from the WNW with a period of 10 seconds, pushing a strong wave energy of 627. The wind is onshore from the W at 15 km/h, which isn’t perfect, but the size and power are there. This is the biggest and most energetic swell of the window. However, for a spot that’s exposed to the west and listed for beginners, 6ft is going to be pushing the limits for less experienced surfers. The afternoon stays similar in size at 6ft, but the wind picks up and stays onshore, so the morning is the best bet. Given that the optimum swell direction is from the W, this WNW flow is hitting it fairly well.

The following day, Wednesday the 19th, still has some size at 5ft but the cross-onshore wind from the north and the lower energy (280) mean it’s a step down. That big Tuesday morning is the one to circle on the calendar, but it’s a long way out, so don’t bet the farm on it just yet.

So, to sum it up: the first week is a write-off for anything decent. The second week has a promising but uncertain swell spike on the morning of Tuesday the 18th. That’s the best we’ve got, but it’s not a classic. There is a gap of about a week of very marginal surf before that.

Stay patient, and keep your eyes on that Tuesday morning slot.

Rusty.

Read more