Guethary - Les Alcyons/Avalanche Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Gutted, honestly. We’ve got a full 16-day window ahead, and for the vast majority of it, this coast is going to be flat out doing nothing. I’m looking at Guethary - Les Alcyons/Avalanche (a reef setup, expert-only, and exposed to west swell) and it’s a tough watch.

The first two weeks are a write-off. From the 7th right through to the 20th of August, we’re looking at dribble. Swell heights barely push 1ft to 3ft, periods are short, and the energy is weak. The combined energy quotes are mostly in the double digits or just scraping past 100, which tells you there’s nothing behind these waves. You’d be scratching around for ankle-biters. The mornings that do glass off with light N or NE winds are still useless because there’s simply no swell. Sunday the 9th has a slight bump in energy (103 in the afternoon) but it’s cross-onshore and the period is only 10 seconds, so it’s messy and junky. This is a long, barren stretch of about two weeks with nothing worth paddling out for.

Now, let’s talk about the one glimmer of hope. It’s a long way off, so don’t book the time off work just yet, but Friday the 21st of August is the standout. The morning session is the only period in the entire window flagged as “expect good surf conditions.” We’ve got a 3ft NW swell with a 9-second period, which is okay, and the energy jumps up to 234 – that’s the first real sign of life we’ve seen. The wind is the big thing here: a light ENE cross-offshore breeze at 6 mph should keep it cleaner than a whistle. It’s still a far-off call, and the afternoon turns cross-on, so you need to be on it early.

But here’s the catch. That Friday morning is a tease. The very next day, Saturday the 22nd, the swell jumps to 5ft and 5ft with an 11-second period. That’s proper size and push (energy rockets to 505 and 517), but it’s blown out by a moderate WNW wind at 16 mph, making it choppy and cross-onshore. It’s going to be a messy, powerful mess, and for an expert reef like this, it’ll be a full-on battle. This looks far more interesting for the kite crew than anyone trying to paddle out.

So that’s the story. A long, flat, boring run until the 21st, which shows real promise but isn’t guaranteed. If that Friday morning comes together clean, it’ll be worth the wait. Otherwise, we’re just watching the ocean do nothing.

Water temp is sitting at 77°, which is 6° warmer than normal for this time of year – that’s properly unusual, so at least you won’t need a wetsuit for when that one session finally arrives.

Stay patient.

Rusty.

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