Le Petit Train Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s size up the local surf scene for the next couple of weeks.

To be straight with you, this is a bleak run for Le Petit Train. The whole 16-day window is a struggle, with almost no decent surf and poor conditions ruining the small swells that do show up. It’s one of those stretches where you’re better off checking the forecast again later, because right now, it’s a paddling workout, not a surf session.

The best on offer is a very brief window on Friday morning, August 7th. We’ve got a tiny 3 ft swell from the NW with a period of just 6 seconds – that’s weak, short-period windswell, and the combined energy is a feeble 46. The water is a very unusual 75°, which is a massive 5° warmer than normal for this time of year. The saving grace is a light 3 mph cross-offshore wind from the NE, keeping the surface clean. It’s surfable, but only just, and it’s for beginners. Crowds are possible here.

After that, it’s a total write-off for a solid week. From Friday afternoon right through to Wednesday, August 12th, the wind is a mess – mostly onshore or cross-onshore from the NW, gusting up to 19 mph, with the swell dropping to 1 ft to 2 ft. The only glimmer is a few glassy mornings, like Monday, August 10th and Tuesday, August 11th, but the swell is barely a ripple and the combined energy is in the 30s. These are lake-calm, not surfable.

Things get a little more interesting but still frustrating from Thursday, August 13th onwards. The swell builds slowly, hitting 2 ft on Friday, August 14th with a combined energy of 119 (moderate), but the wind is either onshore or cross-onshore. The period stretches to 11 seconds on Wednesday, August 12th, which hints at better shape, but the wind shreds it.

The biggest push comes on Monday, August 17th, with a 4 ft swell from the WNW and a combined energy of 144, but it’s all onshore wind at 12 to 16 mph, making it a complete mess. That’s a consistent trend: the swell gets bigger, but the wind gets worse.

The most notable swell of the whole forecast arrives on Saturday, August 22nd, with a 4 ft to 4 ft swell from the WNW, a period of 10 seconds, and a combined energy of 304 to 360 (strong). But, once again, the wind is a howling 22 mph onshore from the WNW. That’s kite-surfing territory, not for paddle boards.

The only other morning that’s worth a mention is Friday, August 21st, with a 3 ft swell from the WNW, a 9-second period, and a light 3 mph cross-offshore wind from the SSW that keeps it clean. The combined energy is 161 (moderate), but the quality is still just “surfable but ordinary.” The rest of the time it’s onshore junk.

Honestly, if you’re desperate, the Friday morning, August 7th window is the only one that’s clean. The rest of the run is a lesson in patience. Forecasts can change, but this one’s a tough one.

Rusty.

Read more